Shock Me
by queenofapology
Summary: Saved from ravishing kidnappers by the Dixon brothers, Mary Louise is trying to revive herself from the dead with the help of the Atlanta survivors. Daryl/OC Contains spoilers
1. It Ain't Right

With one last grunt, the burly hunter heaved his sweating mass up and unmounted his conquest. She lay there still as a corpse- well, what use to be still corpses were now roaming the earth. Though the corner of her eyes leaked small amounts of moisture, her tears were nonexistent. Her body was unable to produce any more partially because she was so spent and mostly because her body was void any fluids. The hunter, with a satisfied air to him, buckled his belt and left the tent that was used for "recreational activities."

Her breath shallow and her body aching, the girl attempted to let her body shut down, to quiet itself so that she could get any form of rest. However, her mind had other plans and reminded her of all the agony she'd been through. The torture. The suffering. She wished she was dead. But they wouldn't even allow her that much pity.

There were three of them in total. The three musketeers. Grew up together in the same shitty Alabama town and were braving the end of the world together too. She couldn't remember their names for the life of her; she stopped living the moment they took her. Took her from the group of survivors that were trying to move north from Florida. The moment they took her identity, took her innocence.

Her she was now. Two weeks later. Her hands bound behind her as she lay practically naked on the tent floor, covered by only by a sheer flimsy cotton slip originally a brilliant cream but now dirty and dull, fraying at the bottom. She twisted her body in a fetal position so that she could push her arms underneath her legs allowing her hands to rest in her lap. For the first days that she was captured, her arms ached something terrible as they were held behind her in a harsh bond by the knotted rope. But as she began to lose weight from lack of nutrition, she was able to maneuver herself in such a manner that her arms didn't cramp. As long as she did this in secret when they left her in the tent alone (the only God-send she was allowed, it seemed) after having their way with her, she could rest semi-comfortably. If they knew that her hands were not tied dutifully behind her back as they had left her, she feared they would do away with her arms completely.

Repeating her mantra she adopted, "They're gone," she fell asleep. However the night passed with a blink for just as she closed her eyes for a moment, when she opened them it was daylight. But it wasn't the daylight that woke her. It was shouting that jolted her suddenly. Quickly and quietly she looped her arms so that they were fixed behind her back once more and tried to subdue her nerves when she heard wolf calls. But these calls didn't belong to her three capturers. It belonged to somebody else. A glimmer of hope? Or fear. She wouldn't be able to tell yet.

"Oww! Owwww!" another wolf call. "Howdy ladies. Mighty fine morn if I do say so mah self," a scratchy southern accent filled the camp. The girl concentrated on hearing any response from the hunters but heard only terse silence and the movement of metal, no doubt the guns clenched tensely in their hands.

"Whaddya want," one of the hunters demanded.

"Whoa there, darlin'. There's no need ta' git hostile, now," the voice responded. "We're jus' lookin' for some food is all. Jus' huntin' n' tryin'a survive. Where y'all from?" the voice belonged to a rowdy man; she could tell by the confidence in his voice and his almost mocking tone. But as unintelligent as the hunters were, they were feeling at ease with this newcomer.

"Dudn't matter no more anyhow," one of the hunters chuckled darkly. "Tha' whole world's gone ta' shit."

"Amen," the stranger shouted. "Full'a nigger lovin' abominations anyway! Thank lord!"

If this didn't hook the hunters in, then nothing would have.

"Y'all two travelin' by yerselves?" The same hunter asked. The girl strained her ears. There was two of them? She didn't hear the other one speak at all.

"Yep. Jus' me 'n my brother here. What about y'all?"

"We're jus' tryin'a find higher ground. Them dead things ain't very good at climbin',"

"No shit! We's tryin'a find higher ground too!"

"You boys hungry?" the girl could practically hear the welcoming smile in the hunter's voice. The girl closed her eyes and prayed for death. She was barely hanging on to a thread the way she was being treated so far. If there were two more added to this gang of animals, she would find a way to kill herself. She vowed it.

She didn't listen any further to what the men were discussing. Only a way to end herself. So that she could come back and kill those bastards.

One of the bastards, Daryl Dixon, wasn't trying to make friends with the group of hunters. He was trying to kill them. His own camp which he shared with his brother, was full of women and children. Knowing that these three men were setting up camp unknowingly close to theirs posed a threat. His older brother, Merle, generously volunteered them both to scope our their base to see how many of them there were.

"If I like what I see, then we'll leave all their sorry asses behind, ya' hear?" Merle muttered to his sibling as they trekked away from their camp. Daryl only held a tighter grip onto his weapon of choice; his crossbow.

"Ya' boys are lucky ya' found us now. We gots some good huntin'," a hunter offered them squirrel as the brothers sat down on a log near their imposing fire. Daryl managed to fight away a scoff. Squirrels? That was his own camp's _pillar_ for food and to them it was good hunting? Amateurs.

Daryl didn't interact with the intruders like Merle did but kept a wary eye out for any suspicious movements. He did take notice of Merle lying to the three men about moving South (a diversion of where their own camp was).

'Dumbasses camp near the road, bound to get some walkers,' Daryl thought to himself.

One thing, one should know about Daryl Dixon. He's almost always never wrong.

"Shit," Gus, the largest of the trio said. "We got company fellas,"

Daryl was already ahead of everyone though. He aimed and precisely shot one of three walkers cleanly between the eyes. It immediately crumpled to the ground and remained dead. Gus's fellow friend went to attack the other one. Merle produced a gun and started to raise it, when Daryl put his hand on it to stop him.

"Too loud," was all he muttered. Merle rolled his eyes and took out his machete saw and waited for one of the walkers to approach him so that he could stab the decaying business man in the skull. With all the attackers down, the five men looked at each other for the next move.

"I guess we gotta keep movin'," Gus said taking off his cap to air out his sweaty head, the other three men seemed to know the memo for they were already grabbing their supplies and packing up their things. That's when Daryl noticed the single tent. Just one. His suspicions were confirmed when Gus went inside the tent himself holding a rope. For a second Daryl thought they had a dog or maybe a bear at the end of a leash. But what he saw was unexpected.

Tied with her arms behind her, a young women with a rope secured around her neck was dragged out of the tent. Time slowed down for Daryl. His blood went cold and his stomach clenched.

The girl raised her eyes dejected from the ground to look at Merle and him with a nworrisome glare. She was a ugly little thing. Bones protruding from her sickly body, her shoulders like knives threatening to escape her skin. Her hair matted and thin as if it were falling off her skull. Her skin was a sickly grey color, which was unusual for the Southern sun beating on everyone's back. Her cheeks were hollow and eyes half open.

Gus grinned when he saw Daryl staring openly at her.

"Tha' road gets lonely, y'see," Gus smiled a yellow smile. "Wish we got more time fellas. We'da shared with ya' but gotta keep movin',"

Daryl almost threw up. The bitch was alive. They had her strung up like a mutt. Daryl stealthily glanced at his brother beside him to gage his reaction. Didn't seem like he was none to concerned about her.

"That's gotta be the ugliest bitch I'd ever seen," Merle muttered.

"Ain't right Merle," Daryl gritted out lowly.

"I'm right behind you little brother," Merle let out his breath as Gus yanked the girl's leash so hard she fell silently to her bare skeletal knees.


	2. She's Alright

"Aim fer the leg, boy," Merle lowered his voice to Daryl. The brother nodded stiffly and waited for the opportune moment to strike by discreetly lowering his crossbow from his shoulder.

"Mighty fine piece ya got yerself there!" Merle howled as he approached Gus. The man beamed and tugged on the leash as to emphasize his pride causing the woman to stumble forward. She looked at Merle stonily trying to remain defiant somehow. Merle raised his right hand as if to caress her face but took Gus by surprise by pivoting and swinging his left arm to strike the man across the face. Gus went down quickly with a yelp and Daryl swiftly raised his bow and shot the farthest of the group in the thigh, taking him down. When the third man flanked Daryl's side, he used his crossbow to knock him in the side of the head and when he was down, stomped on his ankle making sure to break it.

Merle knelt down and laid his fist across Gus's face as he tried to stand up. "Git boy!" Merle shouted at his brother.

Daryl took two giant steps forward and grasped the woman's hand. She yanked herself back and prepared herself to fight the intruder but when he yanked harder and yelled, "C'mon!" she went with him.

Running. She was running. She almost forgot what it felt like to use her legs. It was like a dream. She was abruptly knocked out of it when she slammed wordlessly into the man with the crossbow's back as he skidded to a stop. With his other hand that wasn't holding her arm, he raised a single finger to his lips to signal her to keep quiet. That wouldn't be a problem for her, though. He placed her back against a tree and turned his back to her to shield her from any attacks in the front while he waited for his enemy to creep from the back. He raised his bow up, anticipating for one of the campers to come close enough to strike him and felt the woman behind him moving closer to him, trembling. Daryl ripped away from her, jumping out from their hiding spot and swinging at whoever was following them. Daryl realized it was the man he shot in the thigh as he ducked and avoided his strike. Two cracks were sounded in a distance, causing the wounded man to jump slightly allowing Daryl to drop his bow and clock the man across the face. The man grabbed him as he went down, causing both to topple to the forest floor. Daryl founded his forehead throbbing as he received a head butt from his opponent. It wasn't until Daryl found himself at the end of the knife, he stopped struggling. The knife wielder smiled a toothless smile and froze. Heaving over, Merle stood behind his brother's opponent holding his rifle butt erect in the air. Daryl accepted his brother's hand up and stared at the unconscious victim.

"Where's the slut?" Merle asked and following his brother's gaze, they watched the girl creep out from behind the tree, looking frightened. Daryl looked to Merle for the next plan of action. He only received a "git," and a stern nod; an agreement.

"C'mon," Daryl said to the girl walking past her, not sparing her a glane, shouldering his crossbow. She followed obligingly, not seeing any choice. He didn't run this time and kept his pace steady but it was a struggle for her to keep up anyways. She couldn't gage the time it took them to reach their destination because her feet stung with every step. She felt the wounds in the bottom of her feet opening up and staining the dead leaves underneath her gait, red. Daryl noticed she wasn't wearing any shoes because he could only hear his own steps and not her's.

"Jesus woman. You're gonna lead them straight to us," he grumbled loudly, stopping. She flinched and said nothing though her eyes were worrisome. "Jus' keep walkin'," he finally muttered and began to walk behind her to kick around the trail she left so that no walker would pick up her scent. He steered her for a while longer, his cross bow always poised and ready, until the trees started to thin out and the outline of a camp started to appear. The girl suddenly froze causing Daryl to knock into her slightly.

"What?" He asked when she didn't move. He look at the camp and then at her fearful expression. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked at her sternly, "We ain't like that." She met his gaze with a hard look of her own. When he stepped onto the camp ground she didn't hesitate to follow.

The minute the pair stepped out of the covering of the trees, eyes were on them. The girl was appalled at how big the group of survivors was. She'd never come across this many people in so long. The people all trickled out from their tents and their own hidden spots to look at the new comer. Even the man on top of the RV stood up and adjusted his glasses to see. This seemed to piss Daryl off.

"What's it take to get some help aroun' here?" He shouted. A man with high waisted pants and combat boots as well as a very tall and very skinny woman ran over immediately.

"What happened? Where's Merle?" the man asked with the same Southern accent as the brothers. "Who's she?"

"He's takin' care of it. He'll come 'round," Daryl responded pushing the bow over his shoulder dutifully. He lowered his voice, "Found her with 'em. Three men," he said dangerously. The woman's furrowed eyebrows softened and her expression turned into horror as the couple stared at young woman who was bound and wore a rope around her neck, in disbelief.

"What happened to 'em? Where are they?" the man asked fervently.

"Told ya' already. _He's taking care of it._" Daryl pressed. The man nodded looking slightly disturbed and then turned to the girl.

"What's yer name sweetheart?" The man asked her gently. Daryl looked to her too for an answer. She didn't respond.

"We can ask questions later. I'm gonna get her cleaned up," The woman said sharply at the men, moving around the girl as to untie the knots holding her arms behind her. "Shane can you do something about this? It's knotted together too tight."

When the man with the combat boots stepped forward unsheathing a knife, the girl instinctively stepped back as if to flee.

"Hey, hey now," He said gently putting his hands in the air as to surrender. "I ain't gonna hurt you. Just gonna get those ropes off yer hands, alright?"

The girl started breathing harder and looked wildly at him with fear. She took another step back but only landed into Daryl's shoulder. She looked up at him with a look of desperation that he couldn't decipher. What the hell was he suppose to do, he thought. He rolled his eyes and grabbed her arms with one overpowering hand and snatched Shane's knife with the other, sawing at the ropes. With her hands free, he moved closer to her to get the rope around her neck free.

"Don't move, or else I'll nick ya'," he said gruffly into her ear feeling her stiffen. Though the ropes around her neck were a lot tougher to cut through, he managed to free her, narrowing his eyes when he saw the ring around her neck.

'_I hope they suffered_,' he thought, touching the sensitive skin. She jerked away realizing she was free but only fell into another captor when the woman led her away from the men. The girl tried to swallow all that was passing around her; the people, the surrounding, the smell, everything was different. The tall woman led her to a quarry filled with water. She stopped them at the bank's edge and sat her down. She grabbed a pan and towel nearby and sat on her knees next to the girl.

"Arms up," the woman said softly. The girl obliged and allowed the woman to remove the slip off her body, leaving her naked. She drew her knees into her chest and lowered her head on her knees.

"I'm Lori," she said softly scooping water into the pan and raising it over her head to let it pour. "What's your name, honey?"

The girl was silent until she turned her head to the right to look at the woman. "Mary Lou," her voice was airy and broken.

'_She's lost her voice_,' Lori thought, her lip trembling as she heard the poor girl's voice. "Here," Lori reached around her waist to get her canteen and handed it to her. Mary Lou took it gratefully and greedily chugged all the contents empty into her mouth.

"I had a best friend named Mary Lou," Lori tried to smile but only let tears flood from her eyes for the girl. She continued to fill the pan up with water and dump it gently over her head. The water coming off her body was brown and dirty; obvious she hadn't showered for a very long time. Lori smoothed her wet hair back and rinsed it once more, this time gingerly running her fingers through the strands to clean it thoroughly.

"How old are you Mary Lou?" Lori asked softly trying not to let her voice betray her even though tears streamed down her face.

"Twenty three," she whispered. She was nerved by her own voice, having been silent for so long. Lori dropped what she was doing and closed her eyes. Covering her face with both hands, she sobbed openly in front of the drawn girl.

Daryl was standing at the top of the cliff overlooking the quarry where the two women were sitting. Though her back was to him, he see the girl holding her naked form and Lori to her right side crying so unforgiving. The girl's spine was clearly visible as well as her bony hips. Her thighs were the size of his wrist and her calves even smaller. He frowned and left the sight. _Pathetic_.

Mary Lou sat silently and listened to Lori cry. She would join her if she could. She was just so overwhelmed. She was free. _Free._

"I'm so sorry. Look at me," Lori rubbed her face raw trying to dispose of the evidence that she was crying. She resumed her pan and began to wash the girl once more. As she cleaned her, she explained how all the survivors met and decided that this area was safe and how they all shared what they had to get by. Mary Lou noticed the clothing laying on rocks drying in the sun.

"You look about Jacqui's size," Lori said grabbing a dress and sweats as well as own bra that was laying to dry. "My, now look at you," Lori smiled at her, clasping her hands in front of her mouth. "C'mon, we'll get you some food and some shoes! Jesus, those animals," she spat at the memory of her captors. Mary Lou followed self consciously crossing her arms over her stomach.

The smell of a campfire and meat cooking as well as the sounds of people talking and kids yelling started to make Mary Lou slightly relieved. They all sounded like decent people.

Lori steered the girl to a fire pit that had logs and chairs surrounding it. She sat her down in a camping chair and told her to "wait there." Mary Lou felt exposed and frightened being left alone and looked around her for a familiar face.

"I don't mean to pry," a soft male tone said. Mary Lou looked up to see an older gentleman with a fishing hat and tourist-like clothes on approach her carefully. "But are you okay, miss?"

Mary Lou's face's of concern melted into one of shock. The man awaiting her reply didn't expect her next reaction: laughter. Suddenly tears came out of her eyes, leaking like raindrops as she laughed a somewhat silent laugh.

"I am," she whispered, her voice not regaining strength, "I really am."


	3. Merle Will Be Merle

After introductions, dinner provided by the Dixon brothers (which Mary Lou had seconds_ and_ thirds, but nobody dared object and in fact many encouraged) and the children were sent off to bed. The adults all gathered around the problem they had been brought today. It seemed like no secret that the women were banding together (save a poor women and her daughter who had a controlling husband) by sitting very closely near Mary Lou and all the men seemed to be outcast by sitting at the opposite end of the fire.

"I understand that we all have a mutual trust and we all have formed a bond, but this worries me," a blonde woman started the debate. "What happens when we encounter other survivors? _Male_ survivors?"

"We don't take 'em," Shane answered as if it was the most obvious solution.

"That can't be right," the blonde woman's sister, Amy, said shaking her head. "We can't just leave them? What if they're trying to survive like us?"

"An' what if they're psycho?" a large, bald black man piped up. Jacqui, the gracious woman who was letting Mary Lou borrow her clothes, nodded in agreement.

"We can't take that chance," she agreed.

"So we're turning away people now? When was the final call to join this group?" Dale, the elderly man whom Mary Lou had taken a liking to, asked. It was obvious that he was trying to hold onto as much humanity as possible.

"It would'a been different if we met someone who needed help earlier on in this problem. But now," Shane said. "We're far too into the game. We need to protect our own."

"So this is a game now?" a man whose name Mary Lou couldn't remember asked. "Somebody's life shouldn't been a chess piece in a battle of domination."

"Now ya' twistin' my words," Shane said putting one hand up. Everyone suddenly started talking at once trying to voice their opinions causing uproar in noise.

"Hey! _HEY!_" Daryl Dixon shouted from the outside of the group, as he skirted with his crossbow on duty. "Y'all need'a shut the hell up before some walkers hear!" and with that he retreated to his tent casting Mary Lou a last glance. She yawned and felt her eyes getting heavy.

"You can take my tent," Lori said placing a hand on her knee almost making her twitch.

"No, no. She'll sleep in the R.V," Dale said standing up with finality.

"I'll sleep up front and Dale can take the bunk. She can have the bedroom," the anonymous man spoke again.

"How does that sound Mary Lou?" Dale asked.

"Louie," she rasped after much difficulty. Lori immediately handed her a canteen.

"What?" Dale asked, tilting his head watching the poor girl finish the water desperately.

"You can call me Louie," she said in an almost inaudible voice. Everyone around the camp began to smile, even Shane.

"Well then, it's settled. C'mon Louie," Lori said with a bright smile. She led the small girl to the moving home and up the steps. Louie looked around, observing how worn down it was and messy. But it was heaven, especially when she saw where she would be sleeping. She was so shocked that she looked at Lori for approval. "Yeah this is all yours!" Lori laughed. Louie reached out and touched her arm in gratitude to which she responded with a hug and in return Louie was taken aback.

"Good night, then," Lori said with a smile and left. Louie, by herself, tested out whether she was dreaming or not. She pinched herself and frowned. She was awake and her arm hurt. She slowly lowered herself onto the mattress and pressed her palm into the soft bedding. This time she couldn't help but smile the biggest smile she'd ever given and felt moisture collect from the corner of her eyes. She fell into a deep sleep not a second later.

"_What's he doing out there?"_

"_Does it matter? Look at his biceps!" _

_Louie frowned when she heard her classmates giggle about the man standing guard outside with his crossbow looking around suspiciously. Though he was leaning against the shade of the tree in the beautiful sunny, breezy day, his grip on his weapon looked anything but nonchalant. When class was dismissed, Louie rushed outside as to pass by him attempting to make herself unnoticeable._

"_You have to stop doing that," she hissed as he immediately fell into step with her hurried little shuffles._

"_Doin' what?" he asked, his crossbow erect on his arm. _

"_Stop guarding everything like that," she flapped one arm around, clutching her books closer to her chest with the other. She narrowly dodged a zombie that was idly moving forward. _

"_I can feel somethin's not right," he muttered as he almost bumped into a zombie dragging along in the opposite direction._

"_You **have** to stop being so paranoid," Louie rolled her eyes. "Nothing's wrong with anything." He didn't reply. "Daryl," she stopped. He met her stare._

"_Yer the one with the problem!" he said half-hysterically waving his bow with one muscled arm. "Jus' let me deal with mine!"  
_

"_I can't if all the girls in my psych class keep ogling you every other second!" she folded her arms across her chest. "At least find a tree that's not so close to a window," she muttered._

"_Yer jealous," he stated as if it were the simplest thing. She made a disgusted face and muttered an 'excuse me' before skittering around a stand-still zombie._

Louie slowly opened her eyes and stared at the dull yellow ceiling of the RV. She started to have an overwhelming feeling arise in her chest as she remembered where she was. She escaped. She was free. She started laughing again silently so damn _happy_ to be where she was.

"Louie? Are you okay?" Dale asked as he witnessed the woman sobbing but when she looked up to meet his eyes, he saw joy and relief. Dale could've started weeping right then and there himself. Poor girl. He sat down at the edge of the bed and gave her a weak smile.

"I'm sorry we couldn't have found you earlier," he said sincerely and ashamedly. Louie reached out and placed her hand on top of his and gave it a squeeze.

"Thank you," she whispered, tears still streaming down her cheeks. He smiled wider and patted her hand beckoning her to come eat some breakfast.

She sat up in her bed with a groan and arched her back feeling a pop that was a little painful. She whimpered slightly. When she was healthier, cracking one's back felt like a mini orgasm but now that she was all skin and bones, it didn't feel as rejuvenating. She climbed down from the RV and shielded her eyes from the harsh sun. Her eyes caught sight of her wrist and lowered it to inspect the damage. Harsh red lines encompassed her wrists from where the ropes were digging into her skin.

"It's gonna scar," she heard an apologetic voice. She looked up to see the anonymous man sitting on the roof of the RV where she first saw Dale when coming into camp.

"Thank you," she mouthed and he gave her a hesitant nod wondering why she was thanking him. She felt obligated however after he gave up his space to let her sleep in the mobile van.

"Louie!" the voice belonged to Lori. She was stirring something in a pot over the fire they were sitting around last night. As she approached the woman, she noticed that the Dixon brothers were emerging from their tent at the same time.

"Well lookit who's flappin' 'round Daryl. It's a lil' jailbird," Merle clamored, also walking towards the fire site. However Louie made a bee-line straight to him instead. He stopped confidently in front of her noticing she was approaching him, his younger brother still right behind him.

"Thank you," she tried to speak up, but her voice only came out a loud whisper. "You saved my life," she stared at him with strong, grateful eyes.

"You's a pretty one, now that'a look at'chu," Merle grinned, putting his hands on his hips. "At least not when you's kept as a whore," he scanned her body in a dirty, lustful manner.

She felt as if she was slapped in the face. She took a step back with a look of horror. _This_ was her savior? She let out a sharp breath of disbelief.

"Merle," Daryl murmured behind him guardedly.

"I'm grateful," she uttered her last words to Merle before retreating over to Lori who was holding out a plate to her.

"Don't waste your time," Lori muttered to the girl before serving the Dixon brothers some beans.

"Ain't sayin' that it was any of our business to get involved in anyhow," Merle proclaimed strutting adamantly. "Shoot, if they hadn't got you's all tied up on a leash like bitch like that, I would'a taken up the offer,"

The statement struck a nerve with anybody who was overhearing. Especially Dale who glided over but before he could get a word in, Shane spoke up.

"Watch it Dixon," he shouted.

"I like a _fight_ in my women," he smirked at her. Louie clenched her teeth and reminded herself that he saved her life.

"Wan' me to find you a walker?" Daryl mocked him. Merle snorted and punched his brother's arm.

"Shit, even a walker looked better'n you," Merle laughed and Daryl snorted. Louie looked away in embarrassment.

"Rape victims don't usually have time to worry about appearances Merle," a sharp voice joined the group. Amy's older sister, the blonde woman stalked into the scene, thanking Lori for the food.

But she had said it. She acknowledged the elephant in the room. By saying it out loud almost made it real, made it official. It struck something in Louie and she lowered her eyes sadly. She was a victim. She was something that she never thought she would be. Plastered over the news, frightening women all over the world, letting them know that they were the weaker species. She had become that.

"Can't be a victim if ya' liked it," Merle grinned. The last straw was drawn as Dale charged forward causing Shane to interfere and stop the old man. Merle, amused as hell, stood up and egged on the man for a fight. "C'mon! Watcha' gon' do ya' ole' turd!"

Daryl struggled to keep his brother from bashing in the enraged, but smaller Dale.

"Merle! Stop bein' such a dick!" he grumbled shoving his older sibling back. Louie silenced everyone by standing up and giving Dale a kiss on the cheek to calm him down before retreating towards the RV.


	4. Uneasy Habit

Daryl watched the woman's every movement as his older brother berated her. She lowered her eyes ashamed of what she was being reduced to. It made Daryl sick. Sick that she was accepting it like a bitch and sick of his brother for treating her like one.

'_She just got away fer Chrissake. Let the woman alone,_' he thought while struggling to keep his brother from pounding in the old man.

"Fuck off Merle!" Daryl finally yelled overlapping everyone's heated voices forcing the sibling to stop and stare him down angrily before stalking back to their tent area. Daryl rolled his eyes and watched the women flock to Dale to soothe his anger.

For the next few days, things returned to normal. Merle made sure to say his snarky comments out of earshot from any of the other campers. Louie would silently listen without retort and didn't go crying like a regular woman would, Daryl noticed. She had honor. She knew they saved her life and if this was the price she would pay for being saved, then she would endure it. Honor. It was somewhat respectable in Daryl's eyes, but annoyed the shit out of him that she didn't stand up for herself.

She didn't speak to anybody and except a few words to Lori, she only confided in Dale. Louie regained strength in her voice but always spoke in an inaudible tone. She took residency by sitting on top of the RV with him whenever he was up there.

"I used to be somebody," she murmured, folding her arms around her legs as she tucked them under her chin.

"You still are," Dale quipped, his rifle poised on his shoulder, glancing over at her.

"I feel like everything that I was, what I use to be… was taken when they took me. I feel like it died with them too," she sighed.

"You can't start thinking like that even though it seems like the easiest solution. If everyone did that, where would we be?" Dale frowned.

"Dead," she answered. "Dale, I wish I was dead," she turned to look at him. Dale shook his head and sat down in the chair next to her.

"Only the dead have nothing to live for," his tone serious and stern.

"What do I have?" she lifted her head.

"Me," he smiled. She returned it weak and shakily.

"_Hey! You got one job, old man! Stop fuckin' 'round!"_ a harsh southern accent barked from underneath them. The pair stared as Daryl Dixon sneered at them before disappearing. Louie rolled her eyes and put her head back on her arms.

"I could use a drink of water," Dale said removing his cap to let his scalp air out.

"Me too," Louie agreed. "I think we're running low. I'll go boil some more for tonight."

"Be careful," Dale said as she climbed down from the RV. Louie grabbed an empty steel pot that was sitting near the fire and heaved it to the quarry, nodding so often at a camper roaming around. She lugged the semi-heavy pot down the steep hill that ended at the body of water. Seeing nobody around, she decided to remove her sweats so that they wouldn't get wet and laid it on the rock where all the clothes were drying on. Her dress was long enough to cover what she needed without getting herself entirely wet. Louie waded into the water with the pot and carefully dunked it in to let it fill up. But what she didn't anticipate was as the water began to cascade into the pot, it began to get heavier, suddenly dragging her frail body under the water. Shrieking, she quickly emerged at the top soaking and dripping.

"_You stupid_?" she heard a voice ask. She looked up embarrassed out of her mind to see Daryl Dixon staring at her as if she had recited him complicated poetry. She stared at him in shock and disbelief and opened her mouth to say something, but quickly changed her mind to his dismay. He rolled his eyes and jumped off the rock he was perched on, into the shallow water towards her. She remained still and unmoving in the water when he neared. He dunked his arm towards the bottom, squinting in concentration to feel the handle and when he grasped onto it, he pulled it with all his force out of the water holding it out to her, full. She mumbled something in return.

"What?" He snapped not hearing her.

"What's your name?" she asked. Daryl realized she wasn't southern and had an accent similar to the blonde sisters. Probably California or some other dumb state that wasn't in the South.

"Ya' gonna take this or not?" he barked. When she only blinked, he rolled his eyes. "Daryl. Now take this stupid thing,"

"Thank you," she said and he knew it wasn't just for the pot. He muttered a 'whatever' and watched her receive the pot as well as her eyes widen as it fell back into the water with a deep 'kaplunk.'

"_Jesus_ woman! The fuck told you to do this anyway? Chrissake, you ain't got one muscle in yer body," he yelled at her but she didn't flinch.

"My name's Mary Lou," she said before bending down to regain the pot.

"I din't ask," he spat. She didn't say anything as he took back control of the pot and carried it for her. "Where's this goin'?" he muttered. She motioned him to follow her back to camp and led him to the fire pit. She crouched down and with her hands scraped some nearby leaves together before picking up a matchbox nearby and striking the match to light a fire. She stood up and let Daryl place the pot over the low flame.

"Yer gonna need more than that," he said shaking his head in disappointment at her pathetic display of a fire. She nodded and wordlessly headed into the woods to probably gather some firewood. He stared at her retreating figure with annoyance. "_Jesus,_" he groaned and followed her into the forest.

"D'you even know what yer lookn' for?" He shouted after her shrinking figure. She didn't respond but he knew she heard him, which annoyed him even more. He caught up to her and grabbed her arm to get her to halt; she had collected a few twigs so far. He grabbed the few pieces that was in her hand and tossed it behind his head causing her face to scrunch into a look of objection.

"Look fer the dead stuff- dry bark, dead leaves, shit like that," he commanded before moving off to gather some fuel, heavier logs.

She sighed and wordlessly complied, scouring the floor for dried moss or bark. She made sure to stay in earshot of Daryl while gathering firewood. She accumulated quite a load and as it started falling out of her fingers, she lifted the hem of her dress to cradle her findings. Daryl looked over his shoulder and saw her bare thighs flashing as the girl gathered sticks in her dress. She walked over to him gingerly attempting not to drop any of her load she found. Louie saw Daryl holding a few blocks of wood tucked underneath his arm and remembered her dream of the giggling girls.

"I had a dream about you," she said quietly as they agreed silently to go back to camp.

"What're you, a perv or somethin'?" he drawled. She snorted and he looked at her with semi-humor. "Ya' look a lot better," he finally said after a few moments of silence. She looked at him curiously. "When we found ya', ya' looked like something ya'd find at the bottom of yer boot,"

'_Definitely brothers_,' she mentally noted. They managed to make it out of the woods in one piece and returned back to the fire pit. Daryl heaved the pot of water to the side and crouched next to her to show her how to place the tinder around the fuel so that the flame would catch and burn longer. She mutedly paid attention and did what he told her to so she would get the flame to grow bigger and when she succeeded, she gave him a small appreciative nod.

"Never thought I'd see the day. Daryl Dixon, civilized citizen," Shane drawled as he neared the two. Daryl's mood seemed to turn fowl as his face morphed into disgust and he stood up, messily throwing the pot of water over the flames.

"If I left the women to run this shit hole, we'd all be dead months ago," Daryl cut back, stalking off to do something more productive with his time. Louie remained by the fire and watched the scene unfold; it all happened so quickly. One moment he was teaching her how to survive and the next he was insulting her. She blinked and wondered if all of that even happened or not.

"Don't waste your time on those men, honey," Shane said to her sternly. "They got more of a reason to act up now that the law is gone," he kept immense eye contact on his retreating figure. By the time he looked back down at her, she was gone. Shane frowned and rapidly looked around to see where she had slipped off to and should have guessed she was climbing back up the RV to sit with Dale. He kept his eyes on her for a moment longer, gave a snort and decided to look for Lori.

That night, Louie had her first taste of squirrel. She stared at it as if it were going to pull its body off the make-shift skewer and skitter up a tree. She tried to imagine the fur and bushy tail that usually accompanied squirrels when the apocalypse hadn't risen. Weren't they cute and playful? Did they have families? What were squirrels looking for in a partner? Did they mourn their loved ones when they were separated? Louie looked up and saw that everybody was staring at her intently as she was looking at her meal in fear.

"C'mon darling, it ain't gon' bite!" Shane yelled and everyone laughed. She looked uncertainly at everyone but the group's faces were encouraging collectively. She turned to look at Dale who was at her right but was quickly mocked-

"You don't need his permission!" the blonde woman, who Louie learned her name was Andrea yelled.

"Do it, do it, do it!" her sister Amy started chanting and persuaded to join in. Louie thought, _What the hell_, squeezed her eyes shut and sunk her teeth into the browned outline of the squirrel on the stick. Everyone around the campfire gave a harmonizing cheer and started clapping for her, silencing shortly after to hear her reaction. Everyone anticipated her response in silence.

"I'm a vegetarian," She finally said weakly giving everyone a reason to give uproar of laughter. What made her smile was Dale's cheerful laughter and his lively pat on her back.

"Not anymore honey!" Jacqui cackled and clapped her hands.

Daryl snorted from his position on top of the RV and returned to surveying the area. She probably went to the supermarket- _no_, had her maid go to the supermarket and bring her vegetables and cook them up for her the way she liked it. She probably was involved in saving orphaned animals and against animal testing or some shit like that. She probably rolled her pretty little eyes at fast food advertisements and made comments about animal cruelty. Daryl was angry that people like that survived the apocalypse and then he reminded himself that _he_ helped her survive.

'_Waste of time. She ain't gon' last long anyways,' _he thought and watched everyone start to stand up getting ready to go to bed. He made eye contact with her, right before she entered the RV below him. Surprisingly he wanted to peer through the windows and see her face again. Maybe because he wanted to see how ugly she was or maybe because he felt like something needed to be said. But he restrained himself and resumed his duty. However, it became a secretive, subconscious ritual for Daryl Dixon. Even though he didn't see her when he woke up or even a peep throughout the daytime, he needed to see her face before she went to sleep; he needed her to be asleep before he was. He hadn't even realized he was doing it until one night he was heading to his tent to retire for the night and he had this weird feeling crawling up his back. It rested in between his shoulder blades and made him uncomfortable; he couldn't shake it off as hard as he tried. Intuition, he thought at first and tried to take the night shift from Dale to look for walkers.

"It's alright, I don't mind," Dale said passively and refused to give up his post.

"Just go old man, I got this," he snapped and Dale's voice rose to argue against his rudeness.

"Hey! What's goin' on?" Shane yelled as he crawled out of his tent, _Lori's_ tent. Dale hastily explained to Daryl's annoyance and involved Shane in the heated argument. The noise started to rouse nearby dwellers and Jim and Louie inched out of the RV together. Daryl locked eyes with her sleepy, withdrawn gaze and felt the uneasy feeling in his shoulder blades fade and dissipate entirely as if it were sliding down his spine and crawling back into the woods. He left Shane and Dale's bellows unheard as he voicelessly and dazedly climbed down from the RV and withdrew to his tent. Baffled, he collapsed on his side of the tent ignoring Merle's loud snores and felt the uneasy feeling return; not to his spine but to his head. Why did he need to see her face so badly?


	5. He Painted Your Face

Louie, hazily woke up in the front seat of RV to the sound of a woman crying. Her insistence that she was recovered forced Dale back into his rightful bed and Jim (whose name she finally learned) in the bunk leaving her to sleep in driving seat. She rubbed her eyes and lifted her head to look out the passenger window to see Lori undoubtedly rubbing a woman's back, hoping to comfort or subdue her. Louie stayed in her seat and watched the scene unfold curiously from her position. She heard shuffling and turned her head to see Dale and Jim stirring and being awoken as well.

"What's happening?" Jim asked started to stand up. Louie shrugged and turned her head and looked back out the window. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and watched as campers poured out of their tents to see the commotion and could hear Dale and Jim exit the camper as well. She pressed a button to lower the passenger side window down so she could hear what was happening.

"Hey! What's goin' on?" Shane, ever ready to fulfill his obligation as an officer, approached the women. Though it made Louie somewhat bitter on the inside that he put on a façade that he was carrying out the extinct law, especially when she was being brutally savaged by men for weeks yards away from their campsite, it comforted her that there was order still being grounded.

"It can't be, it can't," the woman with gray choppy hair sobbed holding what looked to be a can.

"Lori, what happened?" Shane asked trying to make some sense out of the situation.

"It's our last can," She said dully to him, trying to subdue the woman's hysterics. Even though Shane's back was to her, Louie could tell that he was tense and perhaps even frightened. All the campers around the scene looked to each other frantically and alarmed asking each other what they were going to do.

They were out of food.

A prickling sensation made Louie turn around and look out the driver's side to see Daryl Dixon walk from the quarry. He walked around the front of the RV passing by the large windshield, not noticing Louie staring at him until he reached the other side and saw a hysterical woman clutching an empty can of beans. Louie watched his face melt into a frown as he looked to the RV to see Louie sitting still as a doe. He approached the passenger side window with a scrunched face.

"The hell is happenin'?" He asked displaying his obvious distaste of socializing with the other campers. Louie remained silent for a moment.

"We're out of food," she replied finally, her words hanging in the air. Daryl's eyebrows furrowed and his mouth hung open trying to comprehend the situation.

The solution was that a supply run would have to be made but the problem was who was going to do it. Everyone remained silent. Louie couldn't remember when the camp was ever this quiet since she'd arrive. To her horror she saw the look on Dale's face. Her breathing deepened and she felt anxiety start to bubble in her chest. And then he did it. He stepped forward.

"No!" she yelled and tore out of the RV as fast as she could, her feet barely touching the ground as she sprinted to Dale and flung herself to his back, clutching onto him as tight as she could. Dale in surprise almost staggered forward but managed to adjust her so that she was wrapped around his waist from the front.

"Don't worry," he explained to her soothingly while patting her head. "I'll come back,"

She looked at him desperately and shook her head wordlessly unable to let him sacrifice his life.

"I'll go too," the bald black man stepped up.

"If you go, I go," Jacqui said clutching on to his arm. Andrea also stepped up, unable to see one woman amongst men play heroics causing Amy to start a fit. It seemed to spark confidence in another man as he too volunteered, his wife immediately breaking into tears, his kids scared beyond belief.

"Dale should stay here," the Asian kid said. "I'll go. I know the city like the back of my hand and the less people to guide, the better." Louie looked at Dale for confirmation and after a pause he nodded and tightened his grip on Louie. When the plan was confirmed, the campers scattered to help prepare for the next day when the group would depart. Louie unlatched herself from Dale and caught up with the Asian boy.

"What's your name?" She asked catching him by his elbow. He stopped and stared at her in shock. "What?" She asked starting to feel self conscious as he gaped at her.

"I- uh, nothing. I just- you have a voice," he finally laughed causing her to look down at the ground shyly with a smile.

"I want to thank you. For taking Dale's place," she said sternly hoping he would understand how gratuitous she felt. He nodded with a tight smile and when he made to leave he paused.

"I know who you are, you know," he finally said. Louie froze. The calm and pleasant expression on her face fell. She stared at him with lack of conviction.

"You're such a big icon in Detroit. You were friends with that guy who painted your face on that alley where all the murals are-"

"You can't tell anyone," she snapped as she stepped forward with a serious glare. His own smile fell and he looked confused for a moment.

"Okay, I guess. Yeah," he said unsurely. She thought to leave but granted him an explanation since he was doing her a great favor.

"I know nobody knows who I am and it's not that big of deal but," she sighed. "I need time before I can be that person again. That's why I need Dale. I don't think I'm ready to keep living yet," she murmured with grim eyes. He grimaced and then nodded somberly.

"M-my name's Glenn by the way," he tried lightheartedly and she returned the weak smile before patting his shoulder and going back to the RV.

She spotted Andrea and decided to ask her for a favor and luckily she was talking to Jacqui. She cleared her throat and the two women turn to look at her with concern.

"Is everything alright?" Andrea asked.

"I need to ask a favor," Louie said quietly and the women exchanged looks before smiling at her.

"We'll take care of it. What size are you, sweetie?" Jacqui asked and Louie sheepishly told her but asked for smaller sizes since her weight loss.

"Can I do anything in exchange?" Louie asked desperately.

"Just keep an eye out for Amy," Andrea said kindly and added, "and Dale. He needs you too, y'know."

Merle came back from the quarry to find his younger brother perched on a log and asked him for any new news. Daryl informed him briefly, excluding the scene the girl had caused with the old man. _Chrissake. Were they sleepin' together or somethin'?_

"Well shit son," Merle drawled. "We gotta git some action then. Whaddya say?"

"Nah man," was all Daryl replied while tightening the strings on his crossbow.

"What, you gon' trust a _nigger_ to git the real work done?" Merle barked getting in his face. Daryl sneered and turned his head away.

"Fuck off man. I tracked that damn deer off the trail last night. I ain't goin' nowhere," he muttered.

"Fine baby doll, but the winner gon' get the real prize when he comes home, ain't that right sugar?" Merle brayed as Louie walked by them towards her haven. She cast a weary and annoyed glance at him. "Damn girl, don' act like you ain't never got some. We all know you have," he cooed. "An' when I come back, I'ma see how you do,"

"There's one thing I learned when I was back there Merle. All bitches know how to play dead but they don't all roll over," she jabbed. Daryl snorted. This only heightened Merle's reaction.

"HOOOOO WEEEE!" he howled slapping his knee. He rubbed his shaved head and lowered his voice, never taking his eyes off her retreating back. "Shit, lil' brother. I can't wait to git back."

And the next morning when the group was departing the camp and Merle clapped his younger brother's back good heartedly; Daryl didn't acknowledge the feeling that he didn't want his brother to come back. He turned to see the band being sent off by their loved ones and felt his forehead crease when he saw the rape girl intimately hugging the chink, her ear resting on his shoulder, her arms around his waist. He rolled his eyes and went back to his tent before taking off towards the quarry.

"Please tell me you ain't here to get more water," he rolled his eyes when he saw her perched on a rock. When she saw who was speaking to her, she quietly slipped off the rock and started off towards the campsite.

"I'll be gone for a few days," he found himself saying to her as she neared him. She stopped.

"So?" she asked softly after a moment. He noticed that about her; she didn't speak but when she did, she did it deliberately and it seemed like she calculated every word as if they were expensive.

He tightened his grip on his crossbow over his shoulder, "You best stay outta Merle's sight when he comes back. He'll come after you first," he muttered. "An' he always gets the prize in the end."

Louie wasn't surprised that she found herself perched above the RV with Dale talking idly about his wife, Erma; his everything. She was beautiful. Kind. Funny. They were really in love. She developed cancer and Dale retired so that they could take a trip together in the RV, but her ill timed passing left Dale alone in the apocalypse.

"I didn't care about anyone. I wanted to jump in that hole with her," Dale began to find himself turning serious and Louie hung on to every word feeling what he did at that exact moment. "I hated the world. We were good people. We recycled and donated to charity. We did our part. Why did they have to take her away?" Dale rambled distantly but then came back to point. "So I left. I just- I didn't care about anybody. I wasn't me without my Erma anyways." He turned to look at her. "But I was wrong. Erma died. Not me. And this- this… end of the world of sorts is a sign, I think. I survived a lot and I'll be damned if I don't make her proud."

Louie sighed when she woke up the next morning. They hadn't returned the previous evening. _Neither had Daryl_. She woke up to the sound of the RV clinking and making distant sounds and when she sat up in the make-shift driver seat bed to look out the windshield, she saw Dale tinkering with it's engine. Amy was fretting near him as she had been for hours and it was starting to get on Louie's nerves until she had to remind herself that her sister was most likely getting personal with zombies. The radio crackled and a distressed voice couldn't be understood through the static before the line went dead. Amy started crying. Louie fell back into the seat. It wasn't until that evening did everyone receive some relief, but not before they sensed some fear.

They heard _it _before they saw them. A whining? A high pitch- no it had a pattern. An alarm? Dust started to pick up in the distance and all the distressed campers didn't know whether to see who would emerge from the encountering red sports vehicle or flee. Louie saw the hat and felt the pressure off her heart. Shane caused a huge commotion over the sound and managed to get it to cease before it attracted unwanted attention. Amy nearly flung herself at Glenn asking about Andrea's whereabouts especially as he arrived alone. Everyone's prayers were answered as a giant moving truck followed the trail made by Glenn. Louie hopped off the RV and approached him with open arms. She grabbed both sides of his head and pushed her forehead against his in an affectionate manner before turning to greet the rest of the gang.

She froze and remembered Daryl's words distinctly about Merle. Her heart started beating fast and in that moment she thought it best to get away while everyone's attention was diverted. She took refuge in the shallow woods by the quarry until she felt that her anxiety would subside. Sitting against the trunk of the tree, she thought of all the possible ways she could kill a man if it would come to that. None of them seemed realistic. The sound of hooves was behind her and she saw a flash of the deer's hind legs and the sound fading distantly into the woods behind her. Sleep came to her suddenly and subdued her until the morning. Waking, she hazily remembered something about a deer. And if there was something to hunt, one could bet that a hunter would be nearby. Specifically Daryl. Making these connections in her head she decided to come out of hiding and creep into the RV unnoticed, hoping Dale wouldn't notice. He did. The sports car was being taken apart so that the RV would sustain. Thankfully he only thought she crept out of the RV in the morning and didn't know she was gone for the whole night.

"He almost shit his pants when he didn't see you," Glenn said gloomily as he watched the car being disassembled.

"You must be Mary Lou," the strange tall man standing next to Glenn turned to her. He wore an officer's uniform, similar to Shane's and had a face that looked familiar. She nodded hesitantly and received his hand in a small handshake.

"Name's Rick. My wife told me about you. Guess you're not the new kid anymore," he joked. She cocked her head to the side. His wife? Andrea was married? He sensed her confusion because he added, "_Lori_?"

Louie didn't understand. Shane was always in Lori's tent- _oh. _Oh _no_. Lori? _Lori_? Attempting to cover up her shock and disbelief, Louie gave a curt smile and left to find Dale. She could overhear Glenn explaining her common detachment from everyone and that it was normal.

"Just act normal," Dale said without removing his eyes from the front of the RV.

"I just can't believe it," Louie gasped.

"It's none of our business anyways," he murmured. A scream and a shriek about a 'walker' caused Dale to hastily tell her to 'stay there' and ran over with the other men where the commotion was caused. Louie retreated to her "bed" in the RV where she could easily see all the drama and awaited for the scene to unfold.

"_Merle! Merle!_" Daryl Dixon strode into the middle of camp looking dirty and worn out trying to find his brother before he got his _prize_. But it was probably too late anyways. Whatever. He warned her.

Louie curiously waited to see the infamous Merle Dixon make his appearance and then resume his cave-manly duties and come after her but didn't expected what ensued: Daryl Dixon in a headlock by Shane and Rick speaking to him like a dog. When he was released he furiously proclaimed he would get his brother back with Rick announcing his allegiance as well as T-Dog, which was in fact a name, and Glenn was volunteered because of his skills. As Daryl stalked towards his tent, his mean eyes turned to see her safely shielded behind the glass.

"Did you at least get the deer?" she asked.

"Fuck off," he snarled without missing a beat.

* * *

Sorry for not updating yesterday! I made this a little longer for your patience :) Thanks for all the reviews and subscribers.


	6. Do You Want Me To Come Back

"_What the hell is that?"_

"_It's a tree."_

"_I **know** trees and that is not a tree." _

"_Alright, calm down Tarzan. It's not done yet." Louie rolled her eyes. She sat poised on her knees on the floor, bare legs (because she never slept with pants on), hovering over her canvas that was set on a sheet so that she wouldn't get paint on the carpet floors. Daryl was laying shirtless on the bed that was pushed against the window and not but two feet away from where she was on the floor. Without moving his body, he tilted his head to get a better view of what she was painting. The window's curtain's were pushed back and the room was golden from the setting sun illuminating each zombie that dragged by, outside the window. _

"_What time do you have to go?" he asked, playing with her anklet that had come off somehow, in his hands._

"_Soon. Maybe. I don't know," she replied inattentively, pushing her hair out of her face and getting some paint on her forehead. A zombie came tumbling out of the bathroom and stumbled right out the open door. Neither even flinched. Daryl remained fiddling with the trinket in between his fingers and Louie kept painting. _

"Huh?" a noise erupted from the back of Louie's throat as she was stirred awake from a soft _tink, tink, tink_ coming from beside her head. She sleepily turned her gaze to the side window and saw a hand tapping at the window. Barely with her eyes open, she got the window to go down and rested her temple at the edge, curling up to the door.

"Hey, hey," Daryl whispered leaning up to get Louie's conscious attention.

"Hmm," she replied her eyes shutting and then opening half way.

"I'm leavin' soon," he whispered to her. She moved her temple so that her face was sticking out the window to see him and her arm dangling out of the RV.

"Is this a dream?" she tried to speak but she was so sleepy her motor skills weren't functioning fully.

"Huh?"

"Will you come back?" she whispered, trying to get her eyes to open and her lips to move properly.

"Do you want me to?" When she didn't reply right away he asked again, "Hey," he whispered, grabbing hold of her hand and shaking it gently to wake her up. "Do you want me to?"

"Yeah."

"I'll come back then." He let go of her hand and she let go of consciousness. When she woke up, the camp was somber and quiet provided the low cackling of the fire and the shuffling of feet over dead leaves. And the emptiness that came with the departure of some of the survivors.

"Louie, c'mere and see what I got you," Jacqui said as she stepped out of the RV. Louie smiled and ignored the hollowness she felt in her stomach and went over to her tent. Jacqui ducked her head in the tent and brought out a full shopping bag. "Andrea snuck a little something in there too," she muffled her laugh. Louie suspiciously thanked her and went to find Andrea to thank her as well but Dale informed her that she was with Amy fishing on the quarry. Louie saw that she was standing near the Dixon brothers' tent. Looking around her to see if anybody was watching, she ducked her head in and entered their living quarters quietly. As she stood at the entrance of their semi-permanent home, she realized it was the first time she was in a tent since she was rescued. But this tent didn't rekindle any horrible memories or stir any emotion in her. It was just a tent. She figured out of the two sleeping bags, the one with the dented arrow on top, was Daryl's. She set herself down on his sleeping bag and crossing her legs, she started sifting through the things she was brought.

When she pulled out a pair of dark navy blue sweats and a t-shirt, she peeled off her dress and set it back in the bag.

"Oh _God,_" she groaned with a chuckle when she pulled out the sexy nightie at the bottom of the bag holding it up, when suddenly a commotion of screams came from outside. Racing out of the tent, she was met with Shane tying Jim to a tree. She looked helplessly around until she looked at Dale and he quietly explained how Jim was acting curiously strange and it started to scare some of the folks and that his behavior could spark something dangerous. Louie sadly looked at the restrained man and he gave her an attempted reassuring smile.

"It's not right," she muttered and tore away from Dale who was trying to reassure her. She knew what it was like to be tied up and couldn't see how there wasn't another way of dealing with the problem. She marched over to the quarry and saw Andrea and Amy climbing out of their canoe.

"Look what we got!" Andrea proudly held up their findings (bountiful amount of fish!) and Louie felt her anger disappear and patted Amy wordlessly on the back on a job well done. She sat alone by the quarry for a while and threw stones in the water feeling better with each 'kaplunk' sound it made. With a heavy sigh she started to head back with the setting sun smelling something that wasn't squirrel or beans. She was happy to see everything was back to semi-normal as they ate a hearty meal. She even gave a small smile when Dale explained the story behind his watch when he was teased about it.

It took about three seconds for everything to go wrong.

One: Controlling husband screaming.

Two: Amy screaming.

Three: Chaos.

Women and children screaming and scrambling for shelter and safety. The few men left over at the camp fighting for dominance. The darkness putting everyone at a disadvantage. Louie amongst the chaos scrambled to find a weapon and pulled out a jutting stick from the fire. As she felt something graze her ear, she shrieked and swung the enflamed branch at the zombie grabbing at her shirt, causing it to fall backwards. Another flanked her other end and she swung it once more to ward it off, which seemed to work as they couldn't find a way to get to her without being burned. She jumped when she felt the RV against her back and knew she was being cornered when a third came staggering towards her. She held the blazing stick out in front of her and knew she had to do something drastic. She swung as hard as she could at the one closest to her and almost like a premonition, she could see the other zombie lunging at her neck. But before the prophecy was fulfilled an arrow came protruding out of its forehead and without thinking, Louie skewered the last one through the eye, pinning its head which started to catch the flames and set on fire. With no weapon she scurried to the back of the RV to climb up the ladder, but half way there, a hand grabbed her ankle and she instinctively pulled and the dead creature proved to be strong. Half-sobbing, Louie brought her foot down as hard as she could and struck the monster in the face, its grip slackening. The sight of somebody's foot placed on the neck of the zombie and a knife right in the skull was never a welcoming sight before now. Daryl Dixon stood up covered in dirt and blood.

He held out a hand to her so that she'd come down from the ladder, "C'mon. It's over now." She accepted his extension and immediately morphed into him, sobbing into his chest leaving him to figure out what to do with his hands. She only indulged in her feelings for a minute before pulling away, panicked.

"Dale? Glenn- where's-" she heaved looking around at the destruction like a madwoman. "Dale? Dale!" she yelled before she saw him standing in the midst of the battlefield, his hands bloodied. He enveloped her small body in his arms and held her as she cried along with the rest the survivors.

"Don' give her that!" Daryl barked as Glenn handed Louie a shovel but it was too late, she was already helping T-Dog dig graves for _their own_. He marched over to her to take it away from her (like he had twice before) but this time she held the blade at him territorially.

"I'm helping," she said with finality. He grumbled about her being a wacko and ended up arguing and fighting with Glenn over how to dispose some of the bodies. It seemed like disaster after disaster struck the people as it was discovered that Jim was bitten.

"CDC," Rick had decided. Louie would follow that man to the end of the earth as long as they were gone from this God-forsaken spot. Once the bodies were buried and burned properly, everyone started to solemnly and grudgingly pack their belongings. Daryl raised an eyebrow when he saw a familiar dress crumpled on his sleeping bag. Inches away sat a shopping bag full of clothing as well as a discarded item. He lifted the item with his fingers and smirked.

"'Ey!" Daryl exited his tent and stopped Louie. "You in my tent?" he asked her quietly. When she didn't reply, he pulled something out from behind him. Louie's mouth dropped and her eyes widened as she lunged for the nightie that he was clutching in his fist. He quickly brought it away from reach, teasing her.

"This for me?" he lowered his head, forehead pressing against her temple so only she could see his teasing smile. She blushed ferociously and snatched the lacy devil when he brought it to her fingers and stomped into his tent to retrieve her other belongings. He followed her inside and made another quip about her clothing choice. She shot him a harsh glare but before leaving the tent, she turned to look at him.

"Thanks for coming back," she sighed. He rolled his eyes.

"Git," was all he said pushing her out of his tent. She stumbled out with him close behind to retrieve his boots that were sitting outside.

"What were you doin' in there?" Shane, who was passing by, had seen the pair leave the ten together, stopped and asked pointing an accusing finger at Louie. She also stopped at his accusation but only gave him a dumb-founded look in response.

"Mind yer business," Daryl drawled from behind hr and straightening up.

"The fuck you say?" Shane asked charging towards the Dixon man. T-Dog quickly intervened by locking his arms around Shane's waist so he couldn't attack whereas Louie stood in front of Daryl trying to get him to look at her face rather than his opponent's to steer the anger.

"Shhh," she said finally getting a hold of his face in her hands, her items discarded on the ground. She steadied his gaze so that he was only looking at her. "Leave it," she whispered. He grunted and ripped his head out of her grip to bend down and pick her stuff up and hand it to her.

"Don' forget to take yer _dirties_ sweethear'," Daryl bawled loudly so that Shane would wind up again. Louie snatched the bag out of his hand and gave him a disgusted look that didn't bother him in the slightest and marched off. If he wanted to get a beating, then she wouldn't be there to watch.

"You're a fucking dead man," Shane said pointing straight at Daryl as T-Dog dragged him off. Daryl smirked and made a gun with his forefinger and thumb holding it up to his eye.

"Boom," he winked.

"That can't be safe," she muttered as Daryl unnecessarily revved the engine to his motorcycle.

"Ironic," Glenn laughed.

"We're not talking about that, _remember_?" she whipped her head at him and hissed.

"Sorry, sorry," he held his hands up in surrender. They were seated in the RV booth behind the driver's side, leaving Jim at his request somewhere along the way like road kill. She would never forget his last wish that he asked of her before they left. _Take care of Dale. _She gave him a kiss on the cheek and returned to the camper wordlessly. Daryl would circle the RV and swerve in the space between it and Shane's jeep just to annoy him. Louie made her way and sat up front with Dale in the passenger seat.

"Why has Daryl taken a sudden fascination towards you?" he asked as Daryl maneuvered his bike on the opposite side of the RV where she was sitting, near her window. She didn't reply, but only tucked her knees under her chin. "I know Shane could have handled it differently-"

"He saved my life," she finally piped up, resting her chin on her arms.

"It doesn't belong to him though. Remember that," he reprimanded.

_I feel like it's the other way around,_ she thought but dared not say aloud.

"Do you trust Rick?" Louie asked to change the subject. The quest to the CDC was a dangerous one and improvised if not aimless. Rick had blind faith that the government was trying to save the people. But did the people have faith in the government if there still was one? This time it was Dale's turn to remain quiet.

"Do you?" he turned the question around.

"I trust you," she offered.

"Do you trust Daryl?"

"With my life," she didn't miss a beat. Dale let this sink in.

"I trust Rick," he finally said.

"What a coincidence. Me too," she added. Dale laughed.

"Glad we're on the same page."

Death has a distinct smell. It's putrid and stings every sense in your body. Your eyes water, your nose stings, your ears prick and your mouth dries. One could argue smelling death is a bad omen. If so, then the survivors would lose their title and the clan from Atlanta would be no more. Jacqui clasped her hands with Louie and they sprinted towards the CDC behind Rick trying not to throw up as the bodies littered around the lawn were decaying.

"Don't look," Lori ordered her son. Louie wished someone told her that.

"It's closed," Jacqui gasped and the group erupted into frenzy. Rick, seemingly deranged, started yelling at a security camera trying to bargain everyone's life. Jacqui tugged on Louie's arm as she remained staring at Rick's feeble attempt to persuade the invisible force. She waited for the tell-tale sign of defeat. If Rick gave up, she would too. Maybe she even wanted him to give up, so she wouldn't have to make the decision herself. Jacqui, had released her hand a while ago and was running with the others back to the vehicles.

"You're killing us!" Rick was screaming. Louie shakily stepped forward and reached out to grab his hand but before she could, a force was picking her up. Shane practically threw her over his shoulder and tried to wrestle with Rick to retreat. Lori was screaming somewhere in the background and children were crying helplessly.

And then the doors opened.

They were let in. They were saved.

Everyone rushed forward and entered the building without thinking because the dead were starting to get closer. When the doors closed behind them, everyone gave a sigh of relief. Louie remained in shock until someone touched her shoulder.

"C'mon, everyone's movin'," Shane said prodding her forward as the group turned around the bend. Not wanting to be alone with him, she scrambled to catch up with everyone else.

His name was Dr. Jenner. The man who saved them all. Not only saved but continued to save with his ample amount of food and hot water. It seemed like Rick was going to be pushed off the top of the ladder right and end up with Shane if this kept up. Everyone hoped it would. At least they did when they were sober. Everyone could forget their sorrow with the help of the copious amount of alcohol the doctor seemed to have. Louie wasn't interested in the booze as she was the food. But that doesn't mean she didn't pass a bottle back and forth with Daryl. The only one who didn't savor the moment was Glenn, who was tipsy just by the smell of alcohol. Everyone cracked jokes, laughed loudly and were radiating with happiness. Louie forced herself to stand amidst all the laughing and talking.

"Where are you going?" Jacqui asked. Without even bothering to look at anyone's face, she held up her pinky and staggered out of the room. Daryl noticed she nicked a bottle sitting behind Jenner as she left. He smirked. She wasn't a social drinker. He sought her out after he found a place to sleep in a staff member's office on the sofa; the area was segregated from the other campers just the way he liked it. Daryl was confused as whether the alcohol was making it hard to find her or whether she was being very sneaky. Clutching his bottle from earlier in his hand, he prowled hallway after hallway looking for her.

"What'chu lookin' for, Dixon?" Shane asked standing at the end of a hallway. Daryl snorted.

"I lost a girl about ye' high," he said holding his hand up to where Louie would approximately be. "And _real_ pretty," he added to get on his nerves.

"You better stay away from her or else,"

"I guess you'd like that," Daryl muttered going to walk past him.

"What's that suppose to mean? Huh? Speak up boy!" Shane yelled bumping his chest with Daryl's and getting in his face.

"You best git outta my way," Daryl curtly responded.

"Now that big brother's gone, you don't have to worry about the competition, am I right?" Shane taunted, pacing back and forth. "You ain't gotta get sloppy seconds, you can have the first slice all to your-"

Shane flew back as Daryl charged forward and tackled him in the stomach. Before he could lay a punch, the ever present T-Dog was there to pull Daryl off and pull Shane down before a fight erupted.

"Man, y'all are ruining something that can be good for all of us!" T-Dog yelled, clearly upset that the men were choosing to fight their battle at someone's 'home.' Shane sneered and stomped off, giving Daryl some satisfaction. He gave up and decided to head back to him room, having a hot shower and going to sleep. The next morning he found her sitting with Jenner eating breakfast. She was staring at her plate and Jenner was asking her question after question without response.

"How old are you?"

"…"

"Do you like being that age?"

"…"

"Fascinating. Tell me more."

"She's not gonna say anything," Daryl grumbled dropping in the empty seat next to her, grabbing the fork out of her hand and scooping some eggs into his own mouth before letting it clatter on her plate.

"Good lord, she isn't deaf is she?" Jenner asked. The two looked at him exasperatedly. "Got it," he muttered and stood up.

"Where'd you go? Last night, I mean," Daryl picked her toast off her plate and munched on it.

"Somewhere _you_ can't find me," she said before snatching her toast back out of his hands. He sat forward.

"I'm the best tracker this side of Georgia's ever seen," he said lowly dipping his head towards her.

"Clearly not," she shrugged before continuing her breakfast. Daryl frowned and leaned back in his seat. That usually impressed the ladies. "Is that where we are?" she asked after a moment of silence. "Georgia?"

"Damn girl. You don't even know where you are?" he asked the pitiful thing. She shrugged. "Where'd you come from anyways?"

"Michigan," Glenn sat down in front of the two. They both gave him separate looks; one confusion and the other anger. Louie had the look of anger. "Ok, you really need to specify what I can and can **not** know," Glenn sighed feeling guilty for revealing something he shouldn't have.

"You two _know_ each other?" Daryl spat. Glenn opened his mouth to respond but was stopped by her pointed look.

"No, not really," he said meekly. Daryl huffed a 'whatever' and got up to leave and Louie put her head back down to keep eating. The rest of the day, Louie stayed in Dale's room on his bed sleeping most of the time. She was awoken when a loud beep resounded in the building and the air conditioning stopped. Louie lifted her head as a group passed by her door causing commotion. She got up and peered out the door to see everybody following Dr. Jenner with complaints. She decided to follow and they were led back into his main research room. After dismissing a quarrel Rick was holding up, he pushed a few buttons and the doors to the room closed and locked. They soon discovered that Dr. Jenner was suicidal and was planning on blowing the whole CDC up, along with him. It was ill fate that the survivors had found him at this point. Louie watched silently as Daryl tried to take a swing at him with his axe, Andrea announcing her support of Jenner, Lori begging, Shane's gun threat, Carol's tears and Rick's persuasion.

"I had to keep hope alive didn't I?" Rick asked, sweating buckets knowing that saying the wrong thing could end up killing everyone.

"There is no hope. There never was." Dr. Jenner was no longer a giving and saintly man but rather a defeated one who had nothing left to live for. He was going to mercy kill everyone. "No pain. An end to sorrow, grief, regret. Everything."

Louie looked up at Jenner. He had a calm way about him. He was ready. "No pain?" she asked meekly. Dr. Jenner locked eyes with her and gave her a single nod. Daryl's head snapped as he looked at her defeated face. He continued to strike the locked doors hoping that he could break it open and bust them all out even if it was by force.

"Wouldn't it be kinder, to be more compassionate to just hold your loved ones and wait for the clock to run down?" Louie had this far away look to her like she was hearing an opera; wonderment, amazement. She didn't hear anything after that nor saw that the doors were opened and everyone ran out. Jacqui stayed and Andrea stayed with her. All three shared an understanding look.

"Hey! Get up! C'mon! We gotta go!" Daryl barked. She looked at him with teary eyes. Dale seemed to be trying Andrea to leave as well. T-Dog failed with Jacqui.

"I don't want to," Louie's voice cracked as Daryl got closer.

"Nobody _wants_ to. But you gotta man up and do it anyways. Otherwise you aint' nothing but gettin' in the way. You wanted me to come back," he barked. "**You** wanted me to come back! Stop bein' such a baby about it. **Let's go**. C'mon. I'm here," Daryl snapped at her holding out his hand. She didn't accept it though tears were streaming down her face.

"What do you want!" he shouted. Louie flinched at the pitch of his voice and started shaking. She looked at the clock counting down the moments till they would all be dead and at Jacqui and Andrea's calm faces. How could they feel such tranquility when she was having a heart attack? They were going to _die._ End their lives. Everything would be over. That's when it hit her.

"I want to live," she croaked. That's all Daryl needed to hear. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the exits. She looked back to beckon Dale but he was sitting down with Andrea, looking as if he wasn't going anywhere either.

"Don't pull this, Dale," Andrea threatened. Louie opened her mouth to tell Dale to hurry but her heart broke as she heard him say:

"I'm not pulling anything. If you're staying, I stay too. He's right; we know what's waiting for us out there. I don't want to face it alone."

She looked at him shocked, her face contorted in disbelief. _Didn't want to face it alone?_ She was nothing to him. Andrea would always come first. Daryl was tugging on her hand and she let him take control as they sprinted down the stair well and saw the others running to their vehicles as they reached a giant gapping hole in the glass wall.

"C'mon!" Daryl grunted as they hopped over dead bodies and ran for cover. They behind the RV and he turned her away from the building wrapping his arms around her and shielding her from the explosion that caused them both to fall to the ground. Though she wasn't facing the blast, her eyes burned and she felt uncomfortably hot, like her skin was on fire. Scrambling up when it was over, Daryl pulled her over to the motorcycle where he beckoned her to climb behind him.

"Louie!"

Louie saw Dale climbing onto the RV with Andrea not before trying to stop her from riding with Daryl.

"Mary Lou," he said softly, almost hurt. She looked at him solemnly before climbing on the back of Daryl's bike.

"You sure?" he turned his head to the side and muttered.

"He doesn't need me," she said bitterly and wrapped her arms around his waist.


	7. She Has A Dumb Laugh

Louie lifted her head from the crevice of Daryl's shoulder blades to feel the motorcycle in between her legs coming to a slow halt.

"What's happening?" she mumbled. She was starting to feel tired of sitting in such a limited position for so long.

"Don't know," Daryl replied. "We're stoppin'." They had pulled over to a deserted road where they could all plot and plan their next move of action. All the men immediately got out of their respected vehicles and gathered together in front of the hood of Rick's car, including Daryl. Louie sighed and remained straddling the motorcycle before crossing her arms and observing their surroundings. Lori and the grey haired woman, Carol were standing together, their children in the car sleeping and Andrea never left the RV, probably sulking about how she didn't want to live.

"Stupid bitch," she muttered under her breath and rubbed her arms to get some feeling back in her skin. She sat by herself and watched everyone do what they looked like they meant to be doing. Where did she fit in? Louie swung her leg over the bike and started walking down the road.

"Don't wander too far," she heard someone say behind her and she resisted throwing up her middle finger. She didn't have to listen to these people. She was her own person. But it was only her own bitterness seeping through from the events at the CDC as well as her previous life taking control. Behind her she could hear the decision makers raise their voices as they argued where to go next. But she was also at an impasse. Did she want to regain her old self or be somebody new; a quiet reserved person that hid every passing emotion.

"Fuck," she groaned and rubbed her face tiredly.

"Louie? Louie!" she turned around to see Dale jogging towards her as the men started to disband and return to their vehicles. Louie rolled her eyes and walked past him straight to Daryl's bike where he was leaning, waiting for her.

"He's callin' you," Daryl said when she approached him.

"Where're we going?" She furrowed her eyebrows. Daryl looked away.

"There's this old folks home in Atlanta run by some thugs when we went lookin' for Merle," he said climbing on to his bike. She wordlessly got on behind him and slipped her arms around his waist. He placed one hand that was resting on his stomach to feel that they were cold and then grabbed both her hands and pulled them underneath his jacket so they would stay warm. She tightened her grip slightly and when Dale had reached the bike, she whispered in his ear to drive. Not waiting a second too long, he pushed the kickstand up and revved the engine before taking off.

* * *

She smelled Atlanta before they entered it. Her gag reflex kicked in at that moment and she hunched her shoulders over willing her throat to constrict and not passage any vomit. She buried her nose in the back of Daryl's neck but the smell reached her anyways.

"Oh god," her stomach tightened.

"Don't you fucking dare!" Daryl yelled. "Hold it in!" He said as he raced ahead of the group, his motorcycle making a loud hum, to reach their destination which was a low maintenance railroad track by a chain-link fence. Screeching to a stop, Louie threw herself off the motorcycle, fell to the ground (and dropped the crossbow in the process) and crawled far enough to start heaving her stomach's contents out of her mouth.

"Jesus," Daryl's disgusted voice floated to her ears. Another rotten stench reached her nostrils and she threw up again, tears streaming out of her eyes involuntarily. She groaned as her body screamed for her to entirely vacate itself but she forced herself to stop. "You done?" Daryl asked when she stood up and turned to him with a pathetic face. She nodded slowly, a few tears still escaping by default. "C'mere," he said with a beckoning of his hand. She walked to the motorcycle and he placed his hands on her face and used his thumbs to wipe away the tear streaks.

"I'm prolly gonna kiss you," he said gauging her expression which was blank. "But I ain't gonna do it when you've just ralphed over the goddamn place." She closed her eyes and laughed silently. Daryl scrunched his nose and craned his neck away. "Girl, your breath is _nasty_," he gagged.

"But don't you want to kiss me anymore?" she teased softly and moved her face forward, pretending to kiss him sloppily, her mouth wide open her hands grabbing the front of his shirt.

"Jesus, save me!" Daryl let a laugh escape as he tried to keep her face from getting any closer. Louie stopped with a big smile on her face shifting to entwine her arms around his neck. "What?" he asked removing his hands from her face and let one hand rest on her shoulder, playing with her hair.

"I like your laugh," she said after a moment, her own hands moving back down to grip his shirt.

"Shut up," his male bravado allowed him to wrinkle his nose and his lip to curl but tugged at the end of a strand nevertheless.

"And about the CDC, thank-"

"I said shut up," he repeated and stared at her face for a long second before straightening himself up and his face turning expressionless. Louie looked over her shoulder and when she saw the caravan of survivors getting closer, she let go of his collar.

"What the hell was that?" Shane jumped out of his jeep practically the moment he skidded to a stop. "You can't just go

"I wasn't gonna let her throw up all over me," Daryl sneered.

"You alright?" Shane asked her skeptical of her being alone with Daryl. Something didn't add up with her hanging around him like they were best buds; especially a guy like that and girl so sweet.

"I'm fine, thanks," She said briskly. "The smell-"

"Yeah, you'll get use to it," Rick said pulling out of the station wagon behind the RV.

"I hope not," Louie's eyebrows furrowed. Rick repeated the plan to everyone once they were ready. Glenn would go first and clear the route of walkers with Daryl. Then Shane and T-Dog would accompany the Carol, her daughter, Andrea, and Louie a few yards away. Dale, Rick and his family would flank the end of the group to make sure they weren't being followed. Daryl looked at Louie as she reached for Glenn and gripped him in a tight hug. She had a pained expression on her face and gave him a last squeeze before letting him return to Daryl. He gave her a stern nod and she only stared with intensity hoping he could understand all the emotions she was feeling at that moment.

Glenn crouched and started running into the city, staying low to the ground and Daryl staying dutiful to his side, crossbow poised. Once a few yards away, Glenn beckoned the next group to come forward. Louie had Shane on her left and Carol on her right. Carol's daughter was sandwiched between her mother and Andrea. T-Dog flanked the right side. The group ran to catch up with Glenn and Daryl and then waited for the last group to catch up as well. This happened a few more times with close encounters with a few zombies but Daryl took care of it before it became a problem, making sure to take back his crossbows; he couldn't risk losing any. Sweating buckets, Louie thought she would faint any second but she couldn't tell if it was from the fear of the sun going down any minute or the heat or the smell. The group finally reached an alleyway that led to a warehouse that was surrounded by larger buildings. It was a small gem of a haven hidden by obscure structures.

"Oh no," she heard Glenn say as they approached the broken chain link fence.

"Please tell me it always looked like this," Lori begged Rick however his face was contorted into one of disbelief and horror.

"T-Dog, Daryl, come with me," was all he said and the three headed into the ramshackle that wasn't apparently suppose to look like that. Louie tugged on Glenn's arm and he looked at her with a fearful expression.

"It was like a fortress," he said distantly looking at the building. Louie had a bad feeling. And those weren't usually wrong. An hour later, the sunlight was fast escaping and the group started to get worried. Rick finally emerged with his troupe sweaty and breathing heavily. He looked at Shane and shook his head silently.

"It's completely done," T-Dog said aloud what Rick couldn't. "Nobody. They're all gone." Glenn closed his eyes and bowed his head.

"What're we going to do? The sun's down!" Carol practically shrieked.

"We leave," Rick said thinking it through. "We get as far as we can and set up camp somewhere and then make plans in the morning. Glenn," he motioned for him to lead the way back. Glenn led the formation back to the vehicles and by then it was pitch dark.

"9 o'clock," Dale sighed, squinting to read his watch and everyone dejectedly moved to their rightful spots.

"You ok?" Louie asked Daryl as they walked to the bike.

"Why wouldn't I be?" he snorted.

"I mean, Merle-"

"That doesn't concern you," he spat.

"Even though he was… rough around the edges," she chose her words carefully. "He saved my life. And I'm grateful to him still."

"Well you shouldn't be," he snarled and threw his leg over the bike.

"Is that an _SS insignia?_" she screeched suddenly pointing an accusing finger at the bike. He gave her a weird look before looking at the painted 'ss' as well.

"So?" he retorted. Louie's mouth dropped open and then snapped shut quickly.

"I'm _jewish_," she narrowed her eyes at him. Daryl's own eyes softened uncharacteristically and gave her a guilty 'oops' look.

* * *

"Where am I?" Louie mumbled lifted her head off the soft padding underneath her.

"You _should_ be dead," Daryl said as he was rummaging through his pack. "Who the hell falls asleep on the back of a bike?" he asked. She gave him a sleepy, lazy smile and there was no trace of anger left. "Useless," he rolled his eyes and left the tent. She noticed that there was only one sleeping bag and it was the one she was using. She figured Daryl must have been up staying watch.

They had pulled over once, when they were far away from the city to make a new plan for some sort of military fort that Shane heard about. The group had to lose a vehicle due to limited gas and Shane rode in the RV joining the giant group of people Louie really didn't like.

The bike started to slow. "What happened?" Louie shouted into his ear.

"Don't worry," he yelled back for the engine's noise far surpassed any human voice.

"That worries me," she frowned and looked to see that the highway was blocked with a build up of cars. Dale stuck his head out of his window and asked if there was a way to get through. Daryl hesitated before jerking his head as a signal to follow him. It wouldn't matter anyways because a loud hissing and clanking noise erupted from the RV minutes later.

"I warned you this radiator hose wouldn't last," Dale chastised Rick as everyone poured out of the vehicles to see the delay. The sudden eerie acknowledgment of where they were standing silenced the group.

"It's a grave yard," Lori whispered drawing her son, Carl, closer to her. Though very disrespectful to the victims whose corpses littered the highway, it was decided that for survival's sake, that everyone scavenge for supplies. Louie watched Carol rummage through somebody's suitcase to find some clothes and though she could guess that in her heart she wasn't proud of stealing, she was happy to find something new and nice. As she wandered behind Glenn farther away from the group, moving past the stoic cars, Louie wondered what the last thing they saw was before they died. Was it a loved one? Maybe their own gun. Or perhaps their steering wheel as they were bit properly by a zombie. A distinct sound of wheels on asphalt caught her attention as she saw Glenn trying to balance on a skateboard.

"Shit!" he yelped and grabbed on to a side-view mirror before the skateboard escaped him and rolled over to her. She put one foot out instinctively and halted the board with her shoe. Her heart pounded and she stared at the item before her for a long while, doing nothing. She lifted her head, smiled at Glenn and hoisted herself up on the board, balancing, and then kicking off the ground to glide past him. Like a natural she weaved in and out of the spaces where the cars were parked.

"I didn't know you knew how to skate," Glenn watched her, entranced by how she effortlessly coasted circles around him.

"I don't think you even know my last name," She grinned and he laughed. She remained on the skateboard for the rest of their scavenge, rolling at a snail's pace beside him, gathering things in an empty backpack. When the pack got heavy, she slipped it on over her shoulders and told Glenn she would "race" him back. He gave her a sarcastic laugh and told her to empty the bag and resume searching with him because the place gave him the creeps hinting he didn't want to be alone. She leaned her weight back and let the board swerve to the left until she was facing the direction in which they came. She bent her knees and gave a strong kick to let herself sail her way back to the RV, her arms hanging loosely by her side and her hair catching in a small breeze.

"Mom, look!" Carl tugged on his mother's arm excitedly when he saw Louie on the skateboard coasting towards them. Lori couldn't help but smile at the sight. She didn't see the battered and torn, war-product but a young girl who had no cares but school and friends. Louie placed a foot down and skidded to a stop, letting the skateboard glide itself over to Carl where he picked it up, enamored. Louie ruffled his hair passing by him as she went to the RV and emptied the supplies in the kitchenette sink. When she hopped off she nearly ran into the person she didn't want to see the most.

"Talk to me," he said with weary eyes.

"You said enough," Louie said emotionlessly. "You made it clear what I mean to you," she said passing by him without even looking at him.

"Why does this have to be a choice? I care for both of you," Dale tried.

"Because you didn't even look at me back when _she_ made _her_ decision you didn't bother to see if I was willing to make one," she spun around on her heel and hissed at him. "She didn't _want_ to live."

"But _you_ did," Dale brightened.

"And I don't have **you** to thank for it," she jabbed her finger at him severely before hopping on the skateboard Carl had set down in front of him, his intention of tying to ride it being stolen. Louie felt moisture at the corner of her eye and blinked it away in the wind. She saw at a distance that a certain hunter was walking in the opposite direction she was gliding. He furrowed his eyebrows and made a face at the girl wearing sweat pants and t-shirt riding a kid's toy like… well, a kid.

"You look stupid," he said as he wearily watched her circle around him adeptly. He couldn't help but admire that she wasn't even paying attention to the fact she was on the board and skated like it was innate; like walking.

"You look jealous," she retorted and he snorted.

"You look like yer twelve," he muttered a little disturbed. She smiled and even produced a small laugh as she came to his posterior and hung her arms around his neck making him pull her along.

"Maybe I am," she said, her proximity allowing the noise to reach his ear softly.

"Git off me," he shrugged her off with a disgusted look. She laughed harder and he couldn't help but roll his eyes to suppress a grin. "You have a dumb laugh," he muttered.

She was the one to smirk this time and pinched his cheek making him angrier and flailing to get away from her grasp. With a last chuckle, she went back to Glenn to continue their hunt. They were able to find more canned food as T-Dog and Daryl sip-horned some cars to get as much gas as they could carry. As they were on their way to returning, Louie saw Dale fall flat on top of the RV. She frowned and put her hand out to stop Glenn.

"What?" he asked.

"Something's not-"

"Shit! Get down!" Glenn hissed dropping to the ground and crawling to get underneath a car. It happened so fast, Louie had no idea how to process what was happening. She heard a distinct shuffling plus groan and fell to the floor before she wanted to see how many there were. There had to be a lot if they weren't being taken care of by the men. She crawled past the car Glenn was under and managed to shimmy her way underneath the road railing and rolled down the grassy knoll that led to the forest. Adrenaline and fear spiking her senses, she wormed her way around a tree and shimmied her way up the trunk as fast as she could. Getting to the highest branch that was most guised by smaller branches and leaves, she saw everything from the safety of her height and camouflage. She gasped.

There had to be hundreds of them. All moving together. Like some sort of pack or herd. She didn't see any of the survivors except for Dale, pressed flat on the roof of the RV. She prayed that they were all underneath the cars like Glenn was. Then she spotted rapid movement that was unusual for a zombie; T-Dog, attempting to find a hiding spot, caught his arm on a jagged end of protruding metal causing blood to spurt out everywhere. Her own blood stilled as Daryl raced out to handle the situation by placing a dead body over him and sliding underneath a car as well. Louie felt disgusted that she was sitting safely in the tree while the rest were cowering under the poor shelter of cars. She had an urge to kill a walker just to release her frustration but knew how stupid and dangerous it would be to even move out of her position. It seemed like fate was cruel to the innocent because Carol's daughter, squirmed out of her hiding spot gaining the attention of a few walkers. She ran to the road railing and down the knoll, just as Louie had, but ran further into the woods leading the zombies to her doom.

"No," Louie whispered her heart stopping. She scanned the area for somebody to go after her but when she saw nothing, she jumped out of the tree herself and ran in the direction she went. She searched and searched trying to use her ears instead of her eyes since every way you turned looked the same. Using her first intuition that the snaps of twigs were coming from a certain way, she followed them. After what felt futile she finally stumbled upon a creek where Rick was standing, two walkers trapping him. Slowly crouching to the ground and without taking her eyes off the zombies, Louie brushed her hands against the ground until she felt a rock big and sturdy enough. Walking slowly and silently, she crept behind the dead waitress, lifted the rock above her head and struck down upon her skull. Though the waitress was down, Louie raised it again and pounded into her temple until it cracked open and the black mess of brains was demolished. Exhausted, she sat back on her knees and raised her head to the sky giving a relieved sigh. She turned her head to see Rick taking care of the other monster.

"Thanks," he breathed after the deed was done. Louie nodded, tiredly.

"Where is she?" she asked testily.

"I told her to say here," Rick said pointing to a dam that was small enough for a small child to crawl into. "She must've gone back to the highway."

Louie nodded and lowered her hands in the creek and tried to wash away the blood and guts that was on her hands.

"You got it on you?" Rick asked dangerously. She looked at him wearily.

"You can't get infected touching it," she said to him. He looked skeptical and as if she were the next 'Jim.' Sighing she explained, "It's like AIDS. You don't get the disease from contact. It's gotta be the blood stream." She shrugged, "I would be a zombie ages ago if just by touching one you could turn."

"Makes sense," Rick nodded, his eyebrows furrowed. "Wash real good anyways. Don't take any chances." She nodded and got most of the grime off leaving some dark red stain on her arm though. The two walked back to the highway and seeing the survivors gathered in the distance, they knew the herd had passed. Carol was the first to catch sight of the pair and started crying immediately. Louie froze and felt Rick's tenseness radiating. _She didn't come back_.

Daryl stalked over to the railing briskly and held his hand out to catch Rick's and help him over the railing. And once he was up, he caught hold of Louie and lifted her over the edge as well but didn't let go.

"You alright?" he rumbled checking her over and using both his hands to smooth her hair out of her face and holding on to the sides of her head. She nodded feebly and closed her eyes.

"I saw everything," she croaked. "I saw her… I tried- I couldn't," her voice broke. Daryl looked away pursing his lips, let go of her head and patted her shoulder briefly.

"Nobody blames you," Daryl placed his hand on the top of her head and walked over to where Rick was to assess how far the girl got. Glenn quickly took his place once he left.

"Dude, are you okay?" he asked. She meekly shook her head no and allowed Glenn to give her a comforting hug. Louie steadied her breathing and broke away from the embrace with a shaky smile. He put a tender arm around her shoulders and they joined the group that was surrounding Rick. The poor man argued his case as best as he could, a hysterical Carol throwing out insulting accusations until Lori stepped in and defended her husband. It was decided that finding Sophia would not be done in the dark and the next morning they would find her.

"I'll take watch," Daryl stepped forward.

"No. You will not," Louie interjected and everyone looked at her, shocked. "You haven't slept since the CDC," she argued. Daryl sneered at her and told her that he was fine.

"No Daryl. She's right. We need you tomorrow and you're not good to us if you can't keep your eyes open," Rick chided gently.

"C'mon, teach me how to open… or make or whatever you do to a tent," Louie grabbed Daryl's arm and pulled him backwards to the bike.

"Jesus," he groaned and rolled his eyes, yanking his arm out of her grip.


	8. A Broke Student

Louie managed to keep the lumber-jack built man sedated for a good 10 hours by making sure his sleeping bag was comfortable enough and he had enough blankets. He eventually threatened to punch her in the face so she stopped and got some rest herself. The next morning he awoke to the odd sound of soft voices and a fire crackling. Daryl was always the first to be awake if he wasn't on watch. He didn't like surprises much so he cautiously and blearily exited his tent to see some people eating breakfast: Rick's wife over the fire with Dale next to her, Carol leaving her tent at the same time as him casting him a sad glance and Louie with Glenn sitting on the hood of a car slightly separate from everyone else. She looked over at him and acknowledged that she knew he was awake and turned back to her conversation with Glenn. Daryl grabbed the bowl of beans that Lori was offering with a nod and went to lean against the shade of the RV to start digging in. He looked up as he heard Louie and Glenn's conversation being brought over to the fire side.

"I still don't understand why you stayed with him," Glenn shook his head handing his bowl back to Lori, who poured another generous amount thanks to the surplus of cans they found amongst the abandoned cars. Daryl's ears perked but he pretended not to be listening.

"I don't know," she sighed romantically. "There was something that just… glued us together. It was so destructive. We were beautiful," she paused and stared at the fire.

"I _have _to know what you're talking about," Lori gave a sheepish smile. Glenn looked at Louie with an expectant stare and she rolled her eyes and gave him a permissive nod.

"Mary Lou's from Michigan," he said proudly.

"I gathered as much. You two went to school together or somethin'?" she asked with a smile. Daryl didn't bother hiding his interest by now.

"_Good lord, _you aint' really twelve, are you?" he gave her a disgusted look and she responded with a dry one.

She turned back to Lori and sighed, "U Mich,"

"University of Michigan," Glenn interjected. "But we never met each other. Well, she never saw _me_," Glenn smirked and gave her a side long look. Louie bit her lip and bumped her shoulder against his.

"This is takin' forever. Where the hell is Rick?" Daryl snapped annoyed with all the secretive glances the two were sharing. He didn't like surprises as much as he didn't like being out of the loop.

"Right here," Rick emerged from his tent, securing his belt. He looked at the group that had gathered; everyone scattered, almost afraid to join together with all the loss they had suffered. Devising a plan anyways, Rick had everyone prepared to go into the woods and hunt for the little girl together. Dale was to remain fixing the RV and T-Dog was to stay as well due to his condition.

"Yer stayin' here too," Daryl said when everyone disbanded to grab their things. Louie furrowed her eyebrows.

"What? Why!" she complained.

"Yer annoyin' me right now an' I don't wanna **not** help ya if somethin' goes wrong," he kept his concentrated stare on adjusting his strings. Louie's mouth dropped open, entirely offended by what he had just casually said to her.

"Work on that story fer me. I want to hear everythin' when I get back," he straightened up, closed her mouth with one hand and left her standing frozen with irritation. She watched from a distance as Dale and Andrea had a heated argument resulting in the latter storming off into the forest with the rest of the group. _Well_, she thought, _at least I'm not the only one having a bad time_.

An hour into being alone with the two men and to avoid having to talk to Dale, Louie announced she would scavenge for more stuff. Taking her skateboard, she instead glided through the maze of cars looking for some clothes every so often. She found a pair of jeans and tucked them into her backpack.

"Score," she whispered when she found a pair of sneakers sitting in somebody's backseat but frowned when she found that they were too big for her. The pair of slip on flats that Jacqui had brought her was too small and too tight and was starting to get holes in the bottom. Thinking about the woman made her heart ache but knowing that she left peacefully and without regrets gave her a small amount of comfort. Wiping away any tears that escaped from her eyes, Louie returned to her hunt and found a large traveling purse full of women's clothing size small. Picking out a few plain t-shirts to her liking she decided to change out of the one she was wearing at the moment. She peeled off the grey shirt that was started to smell from the sweat and slipped on the new white t-shirt. It was loose on her and Louie frowned. She knew she had lost weight (everyone had) but it worried her that they would all starve to death before being zombie dinner. She rummaged through the rest of the bag and found another pair of jeans.

"Looks like somebody's been shopping," Dale chirped as she skated in to the camp. She stoically ignored him and went to pass him.

"Louie wait," Dale said and she complied. She might as well humor him, they had enough time to kill. "Please talk to me,"

"I've said enough Dale," she shook her head tiredly.

"Then hear **me** out," he said sternly. "I care about both of you a great deal, a **great** deal. When I lost Erma, I lost everything. And you three gave me a reason to keep caring. And then we lost Amy," he paused lowering his eyes. "I failed. I didn't… I just-"

"Dale," Louie softened. "There was nothing you could do,"

"There was," he insisted. "There had to be. But you let Daryl start taking obligation for you and I already lost Amy and was starting to lose Andrea," he started rambling.

"I don't blame you," Louie felt like she was releasing some sort of weight on her heart. "It just _hurt_ Dale,"

"I know and I'm _so_ sorry," Dale said taking a step towards her with a genuine look of regret. "But Daryl was already convincing you-"

"He didn't convince me," Louie furrowed her eyebrows at his false conception. "I convinced _myself_. He just led the way. Anyways," she turned her eyes to the sky. "I shouldn't have burdened myself on you like that. You took me in after everything that happened. You prolonged my life far enough for me to get to the point where I could make the decision. If you weren't there, I wouldn't have made it this far," she gave him a small smile. With tears in his eyes he engulfed her in a giant hug which she returned whole heartedly.

"I'm no longer your responsibility Dale," she said when they released each other as if it were official.

"You're _everybody's_. It takes a village," he mused.

"I better check on T-Dog, he looks bad," she frowned.

"I heard that," she heard a distant voice said from inside the RV and followed it.

"I meant it," she gave a sad smile when she entered and found him in the back bunk. "Is it bad?" she asked hesitantly.

"Do you wanna _see_?" he scoffed.

"No," she grimaced. "Yes," she changed her mind. "Yeah, show me. Maybe I can do something."

He gave her a skeptical look as he peeled away the cloth that he was holding to his wound. She visibly cringed and covered her mouth when she saw the gash that ran straight down his forearm.

"Is it bad?" he mocked her good-naturedly with a wince.

"Do you mind?" She asked taking a step forward.

"You a doctor?" he raised his eyebrows, his body folding away from her hesitantly.

"No, but I'm a poor college student. Same thing," she tucked her hair behind her ear and gently took his hand. "I won't touch," she reassured him and he gave a small nod. "Does this hurt?" she gauged his expression as she raised his hand slowly in he air. He gave her a pained expression and she lowered his hand gently. "I think you sliced an artery. You'll lose a lot of blood if we don't take care of it," she stepped back with a worrisome demeanor.

"I survive the zombie apocalypse to die of a cut," he said grimly.

"No," she said sternly. "You won't. I'm going to look for something that could help," and with that she stepped off the RV and glared into the clear sky thinking of what she could look for. She grabbed her skateboard that was leaned against the RV and took off.

"Where're you going!" Dale yelled.

"Just here, looking for medical supplies!" she called back and heard him warn her to be careful. She looked through every trunk and glove compartment leaving no car unchecked. She then started to look through the more expensive cars; the SUVs and the sports cars. She found under the driver's seat a zip-lock bag full of gauze and tiny band-aids, a half empty bottle of Jack on the floor of a truck and rummaged through a suitcase and took out two plaid shirts. Skating back to the RV she found T-Dog wrapped in a blanket outside talking to Dale.

"You should be resting!" she yelled at him while dropping her things on the hood of a car and bee-lining to Carol's tent. Not finding what she was looking for, she checked Lori's tent and found a needle and thread.

"Whoa whoa-" T-Dog blanched at the sight of the sewing kit.

"Calm down. I'm not gonna touch it but we need to stop the bleeding," she told him and having no other choice he followed her. Taking the soaked and sticky makeshift cloth off his arm, she felt her stomach flip flop at the sight of the wound. "Jesus," she whispered. "Dale, I need a knife!"

"What! Why!" T-Dog yelled when Dale approached them with a hunting knife. He gave a sigh of relief when he saw the girl ripping up the shirt into one long strip.

"This is going to hurt," she frowned and handed him the bottle of Jack. Understanding what she was about to do, he put on a straight face and took a fast swig of the whiskey and handed it back to her. She gripped his wrist tightly in her hand flexing and unflexing to make sure she hand a strong hold; she wasn't wrong about it going to hurt. T-Dog yelled out in pain and tried to yank his arm back but she held strong, continuing to pour the whiskey over the open tear as a make shift disinfectant.. She put the bottle down (T-Dog snatching it back towards his mouth) and took the gauze and rolled it into an oval ball and gingerly placed it over the gash. T-Dog didn't bother to hide his pain. After firmly securing the gauze, she took the ripped t-shirt and tightly wrapped it around his forearm placing the needle between her teeth.

"Is it too tight?" she asked him and he nodded. "Good. The more pressure, the better," she took the needle from her mouth and sewed it tightly so that it wouldn't unravel. "Hopefully that'll hold until we can find a drug store or something," she put her hands on her hips and gave him a solemn look.

"Thanks," he gave her a half lucid response and she fanned herself.

"It's too hot," she closed her eyes. "Dale do you mind if I borrow this?" she asked holding up the knife.

"What do you need it for?" he asked her with a frown.

"Don't be such a scrooge, Dale. I'll use it right here in front of you," she rolled her eyes and sat under the shade of the RV, taking out the jeans she had found earlier. She held them up against her legs and creased the material's thighs where she thought it was even. Cutting through the fabric she tore the rest with her teeth to get an even break. When she was finished altering the jeans, she handed the knife back to Dale with a grin.

"All done," she said sweetly and returned to her tent to change into her newly made cut off shorts. She stored her sweats away to use for the cold nights and smiled when she felt her legs air out. Lying down on Daryl's sleeping bag she enjoyed the feeling of unstuffy pants until she fell asleep. A few hours after she fell asleep, the owner of the sleeping bag returned and found her sleeping form in their tent. He paused at the entrance and stared at her long legs now free in a pair of shorts he never saw her wear before; he'd remember. He rested his bow and the bag of drugs he had just supplied to T-Dog on the floor and trailed a finger from her ankle to her knee; she stirred with a flinch.

"Hey," he whispered and watched her face change from fear to recognition.

"You're back," she breathed but noticed his stony face. "You didn't find her."

"Carl got shot," he muttered sitting down next to her and rubbing his face with both hands and explained what had happened in the course of half the day.

"Jesus," she breathed. "But that means there's more people. Maybe they can help T-Dog,"

"The Asian kid's takin' him to their farm. We'll stay here 'n wait for Sophia," he sighed. She nodded and observed his face from the side.

"We'll save the story for another day, okay?" she said softly and he nodded solemnly and lowered his head.

That night, everybody slept in the RV due to the lack of numbers at the camp. Andrea and Carol slept in the bunks in the back, Daryl slept on the floor and Louie slept in the passenger with Dale in the driver seat. Louie woke up to find Dale and Daryl gone. Exiting the trailer, she saw Dale looking around confused and concerned.

"Where's Daryl?" she asked him.

"I don't know but Andrea's missing too," Dale frowned. Louie felt anger bubble in her chest. Andrea was still a sore subject for her even though she forgave Dale. Not a second too soon, the pair exited the woods together idly chatting. She narrowed her eyes at them and folded her arms across her chest as they walked absent mindedly into the camp. Daryl approached her, shooting a confused look for her glares she was giving them.

"What's up yer ass?" he frowned. Dale started begging for Andrea's forgiveness and she shrewdly dismissed it.

"Leave me alone Dale," she snapped at him. "Just go back to Daisy Duke over there and **leave me alone**."

"You bitch!" Louie spat and lunged right at the blonde woman not before being lifted up by Daryl. "I'll fucking kill you!" she shrieked trying to reach the woman who looked at her fearfully. "Should've left your worthless ass at the CDC!" she managed to yell before Daryl hauled her back to their tent and threw her onto the floor in a heap.

"Calm down!" he barked and she looked up at him through her hair, still huffing with anger.

"I can't believe you left with her last night," she muttered looking away.

"This ain't about you," he spat. "Now grow the fuck up,"

She snapped her head at him and throwing him the most heated and menacing glare, she threw herself to the group and turned over to go to "sleep."

"Ugh!" Daryl yelled and left the tent as well. An hour later he returned and commanded, "Git up, we're leaving." She didn't respond.

"Hey!" he barked. "I said git up!" he prodded her butt with the toe of his boot.

"No." Her response was quick and muffled as her face was pushed in the sleeping bag.

"I ain't joking. We're goin'," he warned her.

"Then go!" she lifted her head to yell at him before stuffing her face back down. She lifted it again to add, "And take your stupid blonde bitch with you!"

"The fuck is yer problem!" Daryl yelled getting extremely agitated. It was like dealing with a fucking teenager.

"_You_, you asshole!" she quickly scrambled to her feet to yell in his face. Her heart pounded heavily in her chest all her anger surfacing.

"The **fuck** you just call me, bitch?" he snarled dangerously, his blood starting to boil.

"You heard me you stupid, _uncivil_, _**moronic**_, hill billy, country-bumpkin-_**hick!**_" she screamed get voice rising with each insult.

Daryl didn't waste one second to grab the back of her neck and crush her lips against his, hungry and demanding. There was this insufferable gnawing in the pit of his stomach that needed to be satisfied. After a moment he parted his own lips and pulled away realizing she hadn't responded. He assessed her face for any trace of emotion which she completely lacked. She was still and unmoving, raising her eyes slowly when he pulled away. Frowning with anger and dejection, Daryl wrenched himself away, his rage starting to resurface quickly. Before he could take a step out the tent, Louie used both hands to grab his wrist and tug roughly.

"No, no," she quietly reeled him back. She wrapped one hand on the back of his head and the other on his ear steadying his face towards her. "It's a defense mechanism," she whispered apologetically and his frown deepened. He realized that she probably hadn't had sexual advances that weren't forced for a while now.

"I don't smell like vomit, do I?" she asked with a soft smile and he snorted and shook his head. "I wanna do it again," she shyly prodded trying to test the waters with him. Daryl only responded by placing his hands on both sides of her head and kissing her forehead.

"I liked you better when you didn't talk," he teased.


	9. Pumped Up Kicks

The farm was large. Huge. Vast. A giant grazing field for cows surrounded a tall white Victorian home like ocean around a sail boat. Louie loosened her grip on Daryl, craning her neck to see the house better. The noise of the motorcycle attracted the inhabitants to come outside on the porch and stare at the arrivals. One of the porch dwellers was Lori who stepped down to hug Dale in a joyous moment of relief when they exited their vehicles. Carl would be okay. Louie hung back with Daryl to stare and distinguish the people who were helping theirs'. An old, strong patriarchal figure stood with a steadfast and steely expression, a few women littered around him and a tall hesitant young man. Louie suddenly found herself in an off-guard hug by Lori while she was staring at the haven's keepers. She patted the woman's back gingerly and pulled her off slowly to see her gleaming and happy.

"I'm so glad you're here," She rasped and then turned to join Carol in celebration and mourning for Sophia. Lori's proclamation struck Louie in the gut like a sharp knife that punctured quickly and cleanly. Nobody's ever said that to her before, nobody really recognized her presence at the camp being a glad one. Louie swallowed the anxious feeling away. Rick explained that the large, graying man, Hershel, would be allowing them to stay on their land while Carl was recovering and for the time they were searching for Sophia. After being rejected of using the barn due to clutter and a lost key, their camp was to be set up a few yards away from the house, under a gathering of trees and near the large, mocking barn.

* * *

"Jesus woman. Do _something_," Daryl yelled as he was setting up their tent. Louie glanced up from her nails as she leant against a tree.

"I am," she said lazily. "I've got this wicked hangnail- hi," she stopped short of her problems seeing two girls from Hershel's house approach them with large rectangular contraptions under their arms.

"We brought y'all some extra cots we have," the confident brunette motioned to the things under their arms. Louie's face melted into gratitude.

"Thanks so much- Daryl! I need help," she said turning to the tent. He exited the shelter and looked at her expectantly. She jerked her head at the cot and he rolled his eyes and snatched it muttering about her uselessness.

"He means 'thanks'," Louie rolled her eyes as if he were the problem.

"Your husband-"

"We're not married," Louie quickly interjected. The girl blushed.

"Is he your boyfriend?" she asked and Louie shook her head slowly.

"Brother?"

"Nope," Louie rocked on her heels feeling a little awkward.

"Friend?" the girl laughed also feeling the tenseness of the conversation.

"Hey Daryl!" Louie turned her head to the tent.

He didn't bother leaving the tent to see what was wrong this time. "_What?"_ he shouted.

"Are we friends?"

Silence.

"_Don't be stupid_."

"I guess we're not that either," Louie shrugged. "Thanks for the cots. Oh and my condolences," she lowered her voice referring to the funeral they had earlier for a man named Otis. The brunette nodded with a small smile and her blonde friend looked down. They walked towards the other campers to give them the spare cot and Louie turned to her tent.

"We're not friends?" she pouted entering through the flaps. Daryl, crouching on the ground, looked over his shoulder at her and then went back to trying to set up the cot. Louie collapse on it the second he unrolled the sleeping bag on top of it, grinning. He rolled his eyes and with one hand clutched her cheeks and squeezed them together to force her lips in a pucker.

"Louie?" Glenn's voice outside called. Daryl mid-lean, narrowed his eyes at her and her face melted into a laugh at his annoyance, her face distorting in his palm.

"What," she snapped at him playfully as she left the tent to see him clutching a guitar. She grabbed it from his hands and poised it to strum it.

"You know how to play?" he raised his eyebrows.

"Er, I have more piano fingers than strings," she said furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, trying to tune it. "What did you want?"

"Did you see Shane?" he asked lowering his voice.

"Yeah, Quasimodo or what," she snorted remembering how Shane had shaved his head and wore Otis's oversized borrowed clothes. "Daryl thinks something's not right."

"Daryl? Since when are you and him best friends now?"

"We're not," she rolled her eyes and started to strum a song absent mindedly. "Why does everyone keep saying that? He saved my life." Glenn didn't respond but was staring at something.

"What," she said twisting her midriff to look behind her.

"Are those your _hips_?" he asked with a grimace and held out a finger to touch her protruding hip bones that her shorts had fallen beneath. She pouted.

"Don't judge me," she whined.

"I know this song," he started to smile as she picked up a tune. Her smile was wide and her eyes scrunched up as she tried to find the words but hummed instead.

"_All the other kids with their pumped up kicks- hmm, hmm, out run my gun, all the other kids with their pumped up kicks," _she sang the chorus trying to find the words and Glenn's face lit up at the memory of their old world: music.

Daryl was listening to their conversation from inside the tent and suddenly heard her singing. She didn't have a _terrible _voice. It wasn't the best, but she could hold a tune and had a folk twinge; an interesting voice.

"_Something, something, something plan,_" she chuckled not being able to remember the proper lyrics. "_He's got a rolled cigarette. Hanging out his mouth, he's a cowboy kid. Something 'bout a type of gun. Somewhere in the closet with a box of things and I don't even know what_," by now Glenn was in tears at her version of the song. "_But he's comin' for you, yeah he's comin' for you_," her strumming got thicker and stronger as she picked up the chorus. "_All the other kids with their pumped up kicks, better run better run. Out run my gun-_"

"Jesus, shut up," Daryl exited the tent with an annoyed glance walking past them. Louie rolled her eyes and handed the guitar back to Glenn who refused it.

"Nah man. You keep it. But you gotta teach me how. But pick a different song," he laughed. "Thanks. I feel like I needed that."

"Movies."

"My couch."

"_My bed_."

"Air conditioning."

"I miss art."

Everyone booed and Louie lifted her hands up in surrender.

"You never did tell us your story Louie," Rick said with a smile. Everyone gathered around the campfire that night for dinner in celebration of Carl's surgery success.

"Well, I don't think I've heard your's either," she countered shyly. "Has _anybody, _really?"

"Yes." "Yep." "Pretty much." "Yeah." Everyone consented all at once to get her to start talking.

"Just tell us aleady!"

"Shut up Glenn," she glared playfully at the boy knowing fully well that he already knew about her past. She started listing off her life as briefly as she could, "I went to University of Michigan and attended the school in the shittier part of town. Glenn would know about that. I double majored in philosophy and global affairs-"

"_**She's a celebrity!**_"

"Glenn!" she half shrieked, half gasped. Everyone's faces morphed into shock and extreme interest as they all flooded her with curious and excited questions.

"You were taking too long," he apologetically shrugged.

"I wasn't even going to mention-"

The group started chatting about all the possible things she could be and how exciting it was to have a celebrity amongst them. Even Daryl was staring at her oddly; and he never gave a shit about _anything_.

"I'm **not** a celebrity," she announced firmly, silencing the group. Everyone's face shifted and looked over to Glenn to confirm this; he closed his eyes and shook his head. "Fine!" she snapped. "If he's so all-knowing about _my_ life, then why don't you have _him _tell you!" she huffed and stomped over to the tent causing a general outcry of protest and apology trying to coax her back. Daryl was meant to follow her but was more interested in the story the boy was about to tell and rather not have Louie ruin it with her own stupid version.

"Well," Glenn sat forward, elbows on his knees, eyes gleaming with juicy information. "Let me tell you first, that art is a **huge** deal over there. It's like **the** thing that keeps it going. Like New York or San Francisco, but grittier. Detroit isn't clean and fancy. Underground art runs everything. Groups and everything-"

"Wait, so you're telling me that a bunch of Leonardo Da Vincis get together in gangs and do what? Draw their feelin's?" Shane laughed and T-Dog joined in.

"Nah man. But they've _killed_ each other before. Extreme cases, of course. But they live that shit," Glenn said his voice getting serious and Shane frowned. "Anyways, most of them are poor and get around stealing and stuff. There was this one guy, he was like the next Banksy or something. He was _big_. If he painted something, people would pay good money for his stuff if he ever sold it. Anyways, there's this alleyway, it's pretty famous actually, and it has murals covered all across, wall to wall. It's always changing and artists are always painting over stuff and putting their own crap on. Nothing's permanent. Tourist trap, really. But there's one that nobody painted over or ever touched," he said with a growing grin. Everyone awaited the words. "_It's of Louie_,"

Everyone's eyes widened and mouths dropped open. The quiet, reserved girl that had been traveling with them was painted on a wall viewed by millions. Everyone asked a multitude of questions all at once, confusing Glenn.

"I-I don't know the specifics of it really but she was his muse or something. He was crazy about her and was a sick puppy for her as far as I know. But I bet that mural is still there. I use to take that alley as a shortcut for pizza runs and…_man._ It was my favorite part of the job," he gave a dreamy sigh with his eyebrows worked in a knot as if he were trying to see it in front of him.

"What it look like?" Lori asked. Glenn focused his eyes on the mother and gave her a boyish grin.

"She was on a motorcycle," he smirked. T-Dog whistled and Shane raised his eyebrows letting his own mind wander as well. "It was so _sexy_. But even more than that. It was- man," he breathed. "That was _art_, if I'd ever seen it. Tourists and artsy type people from everywhere would come to see that wall, I swear. I'm pretty sure there's a Facebook page for it."

"There was. The official title was La M_ô__me. It got famous. People recognized me. But then the apocalypse hit. And those people __died__. I was kidnapped by people who didn't give a shit about it. I was raped and tortured for two weeks and not my degree or my education or that __stupid fucking wall__did anything to save me. And none of it ever will. Because none of it matters."_

Everyone remained silent as they watched Louie, who had stalked silently out of the tent to face them all. The group bowed their heads, ashamedly. They didn't forsake an idol; they had ignored the voice of a survivor.


	10. The Continued Failure of Andrea

Even though, Louie would wake up earlier than Daryl, she wasn't in the mood to face him, so until he would stir from his place on the floor, she would look down at his sleeping figure from the cot. When finally, his breathing deepened, she turned over and pretended she was sleeping. She would listen to his groans and bones as he would stretch and then shuffle to ready his things to look for Sophia. Today, after she rolled over and feigned sleep, she felt him hover over her body, his lips right over her ear.

"You snore too fuckin' loud. Quit fakin'," he grunted and used the cot to lift himself up and leave the tent. The sound of his voice pressed heavily on her mind and she allowed herself to shed a few silent tears. Laying there for an extra hour, she mustered up the courage to change and exit the tent; she saw all the men along with Hershel's clan member, a teenage boy, gathered around the hood of a car discussing routes and strategies on how to find Sophia. The boy and she locked eyes for a moment before she tore away and headed to the fire to find some left-over food. Lori was sitting with Carol, talking over their breakfast when they realized Louie's presence. Lori quickly put her spoon down and swallowed whatever was in her mouth.

"I just wanna be the first to say how sorry we-"

"Forget it," she snapped but then softened her tone. "There's no need to apologize. You all were curious and it's human nature, I guess," she said while serving herself some stew. "I just didn't want it to change what you guys thought of me. I didn't want you to forget that I'm one of you," she said quietly.

"Mary Lou," Carol started using her whole name. "I never got to thank you."

"For what?" Louie was confused.

"That day… the day Sophia…" she was unable to finish the thought but carried on anyways. "I saw you in the tree. I saw you. You went after her," her voice started to get shaky. Louie felt tremendously guilty and ashamed.

"I'm so sorry," Louie blurted. "I-I tried. I couldn't- I couldn't find her,"

"Daryl will find her," Carol's voice was stronger and full of hope. "He'll find my baby."

"He will," Louie nodded and smiled softly. "He's good at finding people."

Now that Carl was up and running, Lori asked Louie if she could keep an eye on him while her and Carol were going to make dinner for Hershel's family as a thank-you for their hospitality. Louie hesitantly accepted and stared at the boy in front of her as his mother retreated into the house. Carl looked back at her expectantly. She had no idea what to do with the kid. It wasn't that she didn't like kids, but she never was around any in her previous life. What did they _like_?

"Can you help me with my algebra?"

Louie's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. _Algebra?_

"That bullet must have hit your head, because I think I heard you say you wanted to do _math_," Louie asked disgustedly. Carl laughed finding her funny and nodded. "I guess. If you _really_ want to," she moaned and he laughed again telling her to follow him. They sat together in front of the kindling fire and worked on his arithmetic; in actuality, Carl was re-teaching her Algebra and she was fiddling with a stick in the sand barely listening. Louie was trying not to be bothered by the fact that Andrea was sitting right above them in the RV.

"Hey, that's cool. Is that an elephant?" Carl finally noticed what she was making. She turned her head slowly and looked at him with a creepy smile.

"You're funny," he giggled.

"Do you want to learn how to draw?" she asked him and he looked conflicted about abandoning his math. "Oh come on! It won't kill you to draw one elephant! You can make a thank you card for Doctor Greene," she nudged him and he consented excitedly. Sharing his notebook with her, she would draw a line and he would copy it in the space underneath. Going back a few times with the pen, they had finally completed a page with two elephants.

"Yours is better," he sighed. "How'd you learn to draw so good?"

"_Well._"

"How'd you learn to draw so _well_?" he corrected himself.

"In college I was surrounded by people who did it as a job, I guess. It sort of rubbed off on me," she explained.

"And practice," a voice behind them drawled. Louie craned her neck to see Rick standing proudly over them. "Practice makes perfect."

"Exactly," Louie said smiling down at Carl. "If you keep doing it over and over again, you'll find your elephant better than mine." Carl went to trace her elephant and started to try again a third time.

"Thank you," Rick said warmly at her and she nodded off handedly.

"Any luck?" she asked hopefully. Rick's face fell and she looked down demurely.

"I guess we'll wait for Daryl," he said looking off into the horizon. He gave her a brief smile before turning to head towards the house.

"Can you teach me how to draw a lion?" he asked hopefully and she complied. While Carl was practicing on the corner of a page how to draw a mane, Louie watched Glenn and Dale exit the RV with very concentrated expressions. Suddenly Andrea's head perked up above them.

"Walker!" she yelled. Louie whipped her head in the direction she was looking and saw a grayish dirty figure limping in the pasture.

"C'mon!" Louie yelled as Carl grabbed her hand and they both ran towards the house.

"Get him inside," Rick ordered as he ran with Glenn, Shane and T-Dog in the opposite direction towards the figure. "Don't shoot!" he commanded Andrea. "Hershel wants to take care of it himself!"

Louie got the boy to the porch when Lori exited the house frantically and looked relieved to see her son; she ushered him inside, thanking Louie. The Atlanta survivors and Hershel family stood on the porch watching uneasily as the walker trudged in their direction.

"I can get it!" Andrea called pointing the sniper at him.

"Andrea don't!" Dale warned.

"Back off Dale," she snapped and started aiming. Everyone watched the distant Rick slowly put down his gun. Why wasn't he shooting?

"Is that… Daryl?" Carol asked from beside her. Louie's eyes widened as loud crack resounded from Andrea's gun.

The figure crumpled down.

"No!" Louie screamed bloody murder, her voice cracking and echoing across the fields louder than the gun had. Lori grabbed the girl's arm to stop her but she ripped away and tore down the steps and flew across the property towards the group. Her heart was exploding and her head dizzy from pure fear as she throttled through the field. Glenn caught her in his arms as she bounded towards Daryl sobbing and swung her around before she got in the way. Rick and Shane slung him over their shoulders and dragged him back to the house. Andrea and Dale managed to sprint over as well when they realized her mistake. If Louie wasn't so busy wailing over him in Glenn's arms, she would've snapped Andrea's neck cold.

"Sh, it's okay. He'll be okay," Glenn whispered as he carried her to the house behind the group and passed her on to Lori who held her in her arms, looking quite stricken herself.  
Lori waited with Louie in her arms outside the room where Hershel and Rick were accompanying him. Louie was quiet and motionless, settling in Lori's neck thinking about what she would do without him. The mother smoothed her hair down and whispered prayers to her.

"Louie?" Lori stirred the girl. The former stood up bleary eyed to see Rick and Hershel exiting the room. Rick put a hand on her shoulder comfortingly as she looked to Hershel.

"Are you the young lady who stopped the bleeding for the man with the tear in the arm?" he asked her sternly. She nodded viciously wondering what it had to do with Daryl. "That was very resourceful of you. He could've died from infection if you hadn't done something about it," he credited her and Rick squeezed her shoulder.

"How's…" she looked at the men.

"He'll be just fine," Rick gave her a smile and her face broke into a watery smile. "Go ahead," he nudged her in the direction of the room.

Daryl looked up as the door creaked open. Louie slipped into the room gingerly not looking at him while she closed the door behind her. She approached the bed wringing her hands and raised her eyes slowly to see him in his condition; awake and alive.

"Don't," he warned. She bit her lip from letting any noise escape but had to cover her mouth with one hand and clutch her stomach with the other to steady herself from collapsing. He sighed. "Git over here," he muttered reaching his arm out to her. She floated to him and fell onto the bed sobbing into his bare chest. She wasted no time to wrap herself around him and tucking herself against him. He grabbed her chin and raised it so he could see her tear stricken face. He lowered his head towards her's and pressed his lips against her small pouting mouth. She instantly responded by wrapping her hands around his neck and cheek, pulling him closer; he gently pressed his hands into her lower back to comply.

"Never," she said gruffly pushing Daryl away, receiving an agitated look from him, "do that again."

"Didn't exactly plan it," he brayed before pulling her back for another kiss. She smiled against his mouth and deepened the kiss before he pulled away this time. "Don't start somethin' you'll regret," he grunted.

"Am I gonna regret it?" she breathed against his tender mouth.

"You will if I'm a cripple about it," he pecked her lips.

"Didn't know you were so sentimental about sex, Daryl," she teased in between their soft kisses.

"Shut up," he smirked and tucked her head under his chin.

"I brought you some food," Carol said quietly as she brought the tray into the dark room. Louie's small figure could be seen on the bed next to him, turned the other way, her body rising and falling with her steady breaths. Carol placed the tray on the bedside table and thanked him with teary eyes for all he's done for her and that not even Sophia's father did as much as Daryl did. He only watched the woman with criticizing eyes as to not show her he cared an ounce about her gratitude and muttered about his stitches when she leaned to kiss his forehead.

"She's lucky to have you, y'know," Carol said pausing by the door. "You care about her. I can tell,"

"What'dya want me to do. Paint'er a picture?" he snorted and Carol smiled knowingly before leaving the room.

"Uh, where's Louie?" Glenn asked holding a giant crate of apples.

"Where else?" Lori smiled teasingly and jerked her head towards the tent that was a few feet away from the group's. Louie didn't leave Daryl's side, to his annoyance, for a second. She set the cot up with blankets and sheets to make his resting period more comfortable since he wouldn't be able to move about.

"Uh, hey Louie?" Glenn asked hesitantly outside the tent and she beckoned him inside where she was sitting on the floor next to the cot where Daryl, on his back, fiddling with a screwdriver. "Apples?" he offered and she smiled big and stood up to grab a few.

"Thanks," she gave him a giant smile and instead of returning to the floor she climbed over Daryl and lay on her side, in between him and the tent window, her head on his shoulder forcing his arm to wrap around her back to grip his tool properly with both hands.

"Heads up. Andrea's coming," Glenn called from outside the tent. Louie tensed and Daryl bumped his nose against her forehead, mockingly. She took a bitter bite out of the apple in response to await the hated enemy. Andrea from a distance could see in the tent and looked at the woman lying next to the Dixon man chatting confidently and casually with him as if he wasn't the most intimidating human she'd ever meet. Daryl too had an affable and harmless air to him as he spoke to her, playing with the screwdriver. Both were silenced when they saw her enter the tent cautiously.

"I brought you…" she held out a book for him as a peace offering. He grabbed it with furrowed eyebrows and flipped through it.

"What, no pictures?"

Andrea apologized to him and even passed a sorry glance to Louie while she spoke. Daryl dismissed her pathetic banter by assuring her he would do the same thing to do what's best for the group.

"Hey," he stopped her as she was leaving. "You shoot me again? You best pray I'm dead," he glowered. She smiled and retreated back to the RV. "What?" he asked looking down at the girl in his arms who was frowning at the blonde's back.

"Dumb bitch," she muttered and Daryl chuckled and tightened his hold on her.

"C'mon girl put your arms into it!" Shane barked playfully at her. Shrieking from surprise, Louie shot the gun accidentally hitting the target. Rick and Shane had taken the women and those unfamiliar with guns far out near a deserted project to practice their shooting. Nobody would be unarmed or ever unprepared they decided. At first she didn't want to leave Daryl but he nudged her off the cot telling her to leave him alone. She looked at Shane with her eyes widened and laughed throwing her head back. He tried to appear angry but pursed his lips to keep from laughing. "You ain't gon' be lucky next time if you shoot like that," Shane said with a laugh. He got behind her, which suddenly made her feel uncomfortable.

"Like this," he said putting his hands around hers and positioning the gun properly. "Hold your breath," he told her, his voice directly in her ear. She could feel his solid chest almost touching her back. She complied. "Aim." She squinted at her target. "Let go of your breath." She slowly exhaled. "Fire." _Bang._ "Again." _Bang._

"Thanks,"

"No problem."

"You can let go."

"Huh? Oh yeah. Sorry," he said sheepishly backing away from her. She shivered as he started to observe the others. Maybe it was just her.

"You got it Louie?" Rick asked approaching her. She shrugged and he asked her to show him. She followed Shane's directions that were ringing in her ear still. "Good. Your stance is a little off. Do you mind?" he asked politely. She shook her head and Rick got behind her much unlike Shane did; more respectful. "You wanna move this… this leg back," he said gently touching her right leg. "This arm's gotta stay strong underneath this one," he positioned her stance and stepped away. "There. Try now." Louie fired the gun again feeling much more control of the gun in her hands as it recoiled. "Good job," Rick smiled before treading on like Shane did.

Yeah. It wasn't just her.

Returning to camp, Andrea sat in the back of the truck bed with Louie. They sat in terse silence together.

"You can't stay angry at me forever," Andrea finally broke the quiet.

"Watch me," Louie bit not even looking at her. "You better stay out of my way," she added before hopping off the bed when they reached the farm. "I know how to use a gun now."

"How'd it go?" Daryl asked as she marched into their tent grabbing her guitar and sitting on the cot, her legs over his stomach.

"Oh, you know," she said picking at a few notes. "I threatened Andrea with a gun."

"Y'all women are too damn emotional," he muttered tracing a finger down her arm. He frowned. "Why do you smell?"

Her finger slipped as she strummed the wrong note. "What? I do not," she argued trying not to look at him. His frown deepened and he yanked on her arm to bring her upper body closer to his nose. She yanked herself out of his grip when he started sniffing like the professional hunter he was.

"That ain't your sweat," he said suspiciously.

"He was only trying to help me aim," she finally said almost inaudibly. But Daryl still heard her and sat up slightly.

"_Who_," he demanded. She didn't respond, only continued strumming with her lips drawn tight. He sat up and motioned to get out of the make-shift bed.

"Daryl no!" Louie said abandoning the guitar and trying to wrestle him down. He struggled with the girl before he looked at her seriously.

"Did he touch ya?" he barked. When she didn't answer right away he repeated the question, "Lou. Did. He. Touch. You?"

"No," she said firmly. He breathed heavily trying to subdue his anger before lying back down completely. He reached for her bicep and pulled her down on top of him.

"You stay away from him, understand?" he murmured and she smiled.

"That's the first time I've heard you say my name, I think," she peered at him coyly.

He rolled his eyes. "Fuckin' women," he muttered before pressing his lips against hers.


	11. Bath Buddies

**Sorry for the late update! You guys know I'm usually on top of things, it's just finals week!**

** Here's something to keep you guys satiated, you little freaks! ;)**

**Just two more finals next week and I'll have ****two more chapters hopefully up by Friday!  
****Enjoy!**

* * *

A stillness in the breeze stifled everyone's brains. The air itself became heavy and thick like fog, swirling around lungs. Fear crawled like ants from underneath the earth and inched into their hearts and squeezed sickeningly, painfully. They looked to each other to confirm they had heard the words. They prayed they hadn't.

"There're walkers in the barn."

No surprise that Shane was first on his feet, T-Dog following dutifully. It took Daryl only a second to head towards the direction of the barn.

"Stay here," he gruffly said over his shoulder. Louie thought nothing to ignore his command and jogged over to the barn, tailing Glenn and pestering him for information to which he answered null.

"Glenn!" Louie finally seized his arm and jerked him to a stop. He acted forlorn and shiftily looked around him as if he would be prosecuted for telling her.

"I went to go meet Maggie-"

"_Who?_"

"Hershel's daughter. I told her I'd meet her there and… she said I wasn't supposed to see it!" he cried helplessly. Glowering at his clouded judgment because of a girl, Louie managed to forgive him.

"At least we found out sooner than later," she said testily. "C'mon."

Shane attempted to pull the doors of the barn open but the lock was unrelenting and barely moved an inch. He pressed his face against the doors to see through the cracks- suddenly the heavy gates started rattling and an uprising of moans could be heard. Shane jumped back from the sudden surprise and pulled out his gun, aiming it at the lock.

"No!" Rick intervened before Shane could pull a shot. Shane looked wildly at Rick as if he were a deranged man.

"The fuck are you doing?" Shane roared. "There are _walkers_ in there man! There are no ifs, ands or buts!"

"They were locked in!" Rick reasoned. "_Intentionally_. For a reason! If we got a shot at being somewhere safe, **this is it.** Let me talk to Hershel, just give me a chance to-"

"They ain't house guests Rick! They're what we're runnin' from!" Shane roared, his gun erect in the air.

"Hershel thinks they're sick. It's his family and friends in there," Dale interjected pleadingly. Everyone looked at the older man in disbelief. "He doesn't seem them as dead."

"I can't fucking believe this," Shane breathed. "You gon' let that man sacrifice us because he can't get a fuckin' grip on reality?" Rick looking tired and in disbelief as well that they were living a mere yard away from being walker bait couldn't manage a response.

"I agree with Rick," Louie spoke up bravely. "We finally found somewhere safe to be," she sighed. "Rick should talk to Hershel. At least before we do something rash that we'll regret," she said staring straight at Shane.

Clenching and unclenching his jaw and nostrils flaring, he matched her stare until he broke. "I want a guard at **all** times on that barn," he said staring at everyone sternly while pointing the gun at the doors. "Y'all hear me? At **all** times." He marched off towards the RV with Andrea trailing behind him to probably start the first watch.

Rick looked at Louie with a quiet stare. She gave him a small smile to let him know that words weren't necessary.

She was with him.

Unfortunately, another stare attracted her attention. Daryl looked at her with solid disdain before heading in the direction Shane took off. Silencing her need to go after him and console him, she turned to see Glenn chasing Hershel's brunette daughter. Louie deduced that it was Maggie, especially the way she was glaring daggers at him. The feisty woman fulfilled her emotions by placing an egg in his cap and smashing it on his head, a runny mess falling down his face. Going to stalk after her and give her a piece of her mind, Glenn grabbed Louie's arm and told her it wasn't worth it and that it was his fault.

"It's not a fault if it was the right thing to do," she put her hand on his cheek and reprimanded him. Out of the corner of her eye, Louie curiously saw Carol slinking off towards the stables and in the back of the younger girl's mind, she had a feeling the older woman was going after somebody. Mutely, Louie walked away from Glenn and treaded in the footsteps that led to the stable. She heard Carol's pleas start to grow as she got closer.

"…I can't bear to lose you too," she heard Carol say. The sound of something heavy crashing onto the floor and a yell of pain that distinctly belonged to Daryl made her jump. Quickly rounding the corner she saw Daryl hunched over and Carol going to tend to him.

"Are you-"

"Just leave me be!" Daryl spat and clutching his side he straightened up. Both froze when they saw Louie standing there. "Stupid bitch," Daryl muttered as he limped away from Carol and pushed past Louie. The latter didn't budge an inch or even follow him with her eyes as the man trudged away from her; she kept her body and eyes locked on the woman in front of her calculating. Carol returned the hard stare with an uneasy and nervous one before Louie tore herself away and walked back to the campsite.

She didn't fail to see Shane with Rick in front of the barn talking in grave tones. Though she couldn't hear what their conversation was about, she imagined it was for the benefit of everyone. It made her think about blind faith and trust.

Rick was trying to do the right thing. She trusted him.

Shane was trying to do the right thing. She didn't trust him.

He wasn't always a shady character. She remembered a time when Shane was collected, reasonable and not frightening. When was the tipping point? Perhaps when his best friend came back to reclaim his wife. She almost spat in disgust. There was nothing worse than betrayal. _She would know_. The agony of treachery was being repeated right in front of her and she stood idly watching the story unfold. No. Not this time.

"Rick!" she called almost sprinting to the barn. The men looked up curiously.

"What's wrong?" Shane asked concerned as she approached them. She wanted to expose him. Show Rick what fraud he had for a friend. Why did he have to make it difficult and act concerned? It reminded her of when she _trusted_ him. She stared at Shane for a long while trying to decipher if he was one man or two. She looked helplessly at Rick as if his face would have an answer; an answer as to if Shane would ever be okay again.

"Give us a minute," Rick said cautiously to his best friend with a clap on the shoulder. Shane's eyebrows furrowed at Louie in wonderment and shrugged.

"You let me know if there's anythin' I can do," he offered while walking away. Louie felt like asking him to change time. Change his mistakes.

"What's wrong?" Rick asked gently this time in their privacy. Louie's mouth hung open like a fish and she looked helplessly at him trying to find the courage to tell him the truth. To tell him everything.

"What did Hershel say?" She finally asked meekly. Rick wasn't stupid. He saw right through her difficulty but didn't press the matter so that she would come to tell him whatever it was in time. He sighed and looked away from her innocent face.

"I haven't told anyone yet," his words weighted down on her gut. Anything could have followed that phrase.

_We can stay._

_The walkers will go._

_I know my best friend's screwing my wife._

"He wants us gone."

"No," Louie breathed. He looked back at her morosely.

"I told him. I told him that we can't- _we can't_. He doesn't know what it's like out there. He- he hasn't seen anything," Rick explained in an eerily calm tone.

"You'll get to him. I know you can," Louie encouraged, placing a hand on his arm.

"I don't know. I just don't know," he looked away again. "Everyone wants answers and I don't have them all. Why do they even look to me?"

"Probably the uniform," she joked about his now lost attire and the corner of his lips twitched. "We look to you because you haven't done us wrong. Not once have you done something because it was what _you_ wanted. It was always for us," she chided. She tucked her hair behind her ear.

"I haven't told anyone yet," she teased him with his words and this time he frowned. "But do you know how I ended up with those men? Tied up like a dog?" He looked at her solemnly and shook his head slowly. "I wasn't kidnapped. I was _bartered._"

"What?" Rick asked in pure shock. She sighed and nodded.

"There were a lot of us when people started turning. It was after the hysteria and people started dying off. We had no idea where we were going. Just trying to survive, I guess. I had a friend in that group. We weren't close but we… we were- I thought we were friends," she swallowed her words with difficultly.

"You don't have to-" Rick lowered his voice and she shook her head.

"You need to hear this," she pressed. "We didn't have much food. And those men… those men had guns. They were going to kill us and take our stuff," she said distantly but suddenly her tone turned hard and cold. "But he _traded_ me to keep their food. So they could survive. He sacrificed me," her breathing became ragged and her words on the verge of hysteria. She looked at Rick hoping he was listening hard. "I don't feel scared around you Rick. You do what's right. You- you're loyal, you know? You wouldn't ever trade us," she started to choke up and with sympathy dripping from his face he took the broken girl in his arms. When they pulled away she said, "The world's a prison now, and you're the only one with the badge," she said wearily.

"I ain't the only one," he gave a hollow laugh, referring to Shane.

"Like I said… you're loyal, Rick," she didn't smile.

* * *

"What was that about?" Shane asked Louie as she was heading toward her tent. She didn't respond. "What, suddenly you ain't talking to me anymore? Louie!" he went to grab her arm but she slipped out of his grip, staring harshly at him. He gave a coy grin, "Your big, bad boyfriend tell you not to talk to me or somethin'?" She didn't bother correcting him as to provoke him more. "So, it's official. You n' him?,"

It was her turn to smirk. "It's just killing you, isn't it?" she sneered. "Even though it's not true. It's killing you to think that even Daryl Dixon isn't alone." Shane's eyes averted her face to stare off in the distance.

"No he ain't," he chuckled and walked away. Louie frowned and looked in the direction he had just been looking and saw Daryl and Carol walking out of the forest looking demure, but exchanging glances anyways. She remained frozen, staring at the pair. Daryl merged away from the path they were both headed and went straight to Louie when he caught her expressionless face. He squinted at her with a frown.

"You did wrong," he said to her with a scrutinizing glare. She knew that he was mentioning the barn incident. She only gave him a flat look of exasperation and from the corner of her eye, she could see Carol skirting them.

"We shoulda just killed them all right there," he growled.

"I can't believe you're actually talking to me about your feelings," she snorted lightheartedly, inspecting her arm when she felt some sort of bug pinch her.

"Bitch," he turned away. Louie laughed and caught his arm to pull him back.

"Ok, ok. Talk, talk," she laughed. "Unless you want to go cry to Carol about that too,"

He looked at her sense humor, speechlessly. She didn't moan or bitch about how he wasn't spending time with her or that he was off with some other woman. She mocked him for it. "You're crazy, you know that?"

She sniffed and grinned. "Did you want me to hold your skirts and become some mute person again?"

"I think I liked you better like that," he squinted at the sky and peered at her to see her reaction. She wasn't insulted like he thought she would be.

"It was pathetic," she laughed but stressed every word so that stalker Carol would hear it. "I mourned myself and got over it. Playing damsel in distress will only get you and everyone around you, _killed_,"

Daryl could help but smirk at her confidence that showed every passing day. "I don't even know who you are," he tugged the ends of her hair but not coming closer as they were in public.

"_I_ know. That's what matters. _You_, on the other hand, smell something awful. Go to that tower thing over there and start a fire and I'll bring some hot water," she scrunched her nose and pointed to a brick pillar near the forest so he could have some privacy while he bathed.

"It's a-"

"Yeah, yeah something to do with barns and hicks or something. Go, just please…" she interrupted his correction to push him off and he rolled his eyes before complying. As she filled up a large bucket with water that was always over the main fire by the campsite, Glenn approached her, sans egg.

"Hey, you said you'd teach me how to play," he said holding up the guitar she had left by the RV a few days ago. She hesitated for a moment not wanting to keep Daryl waiting; she saw smoke rising from where he was and bit her lip.

"Yeah," she breathed. "Ok, I can multitask. Help me get this bucket over there and I'll teach you."

"W-why over there?" he asked nervously taking the bucket as she tossed in a shallow pan and grabbed the stool and guitar.

"I need to give Daryl a bath," she replied coolly.

"If we all weren't facing the same circumstance, that would be funny," he gulped. "He's lucky. I didn't know bathing without a shower was this difficult."

The boy wasn't wrong. Self grooming wasn't easy when you don't have two hands. But that wasn't the only problem. Firstly, being naked outdoors is a risk enough exposing your bare skin with all the bugs and critters and hot sun. And even when they had a quarry, they didn't want to bathe in their own water supply. Even washing clothes and dishes was done off the banks as not to soil the drinking water. Secondly, it isn't as easy to clean yourself with one hand taking care of the water, leaving the other hand to clean, balance or protect yourself. Thirdly, by the time you have got your situation handled, the water's probably gone cold.

"Where do you want this?" he asked when they reached Daryl, crouching and kindling the fire.

"Right here's fine," she said placing the stool down near the fire.

"Ain't you got somewhere to be?" Daryl barked when he saw the kid looming causing Glenn to look helplessly at Louie.

The girl nonchalantly responded, "I promised Glenn I would teach him how to play. Sit." Daryl begrudgingly sat down on the stool and glared at her. After time, the campers couldn't afford to be shy or prude with the lack of privacy and safety. This, especially, wasn't Daryl's problem; his was that he wanted some alone time with Louie. They weren't granted much, after all.

"Ain't you a saint," he spat.

"Clothes," she demanded, ignoring his tone, before walking over to Glenn, telling him to sit down on the ground near the fire. She started with a warning."I don't know how to play very well. I only know four proper chords because someone taught me that every pop song has that many and that you could manage that way. I learned the others by ear and not very well if you listen carefully. I don't know the letters of the chords either, just where they are," she instructed him.

"That's fine," he spluttered. She sighed and put the guitar in his lap.

"We'll number the strings. One, two, three, four, five and six, okay?" she said placing his fingers over the neck and he nodded. She then showed him where his fingers went. "This is chord _A_for the sake of argument. Strum that with your other hand holding these strings."

He complied and a very clumsy note came out. She smiled.

"Not so tight, let your fingers _press_ not-"

"Hey!" Daryl interrupted with a foul tone. "I'm freezing here," he sat on the stool, arms crossed across his chest, knees tucked towards his stomach, practically nude save his drawers.

"Don't press so hard," she finished her thought while walking a few feet toward the naked man. "Keep strumming and get comfortable before I teach you the next chord."

Louie stood in front of him and grinned down at his large body. He only moved his eyes upward slowly to give her an aggravated glare. She let out a yelp of a laugh before dipping the pan into the hot water and poured it over his head. His body melted and let go of all tenseness, his muscles releasing pressure. She bit her lip from smiling at the state of his ease under the hot water. She went back to pour the water over his head and used her other hand to push his hair back so that it would rinse out properly.

"No soap?" he mumbled.

"Oh yeah," she said before reaching into her back pocket and pulling out a dry bar of soap. He grabbed it and started lathering his body while she poured the water over him.

"Good Glenn," Louie said over her shoulder, listening to the boy's strumming improve with each stroke. She saw him sitting hunched over, his eyes concentrated on the guitar not even paying attention to the most intimidating man being bathed. "Now move your pointer finger on string two and your ring finger on uh… three? No four. Strum? Uh, try moving your hand down a bar thing. Yeah, there you go. We'll call that chord _B_ then."

"Do you even know what you're saying?" Daryl asked suspiciously up at her. Louie gave him a dry looking before dumping the water on his head.

* * *

"Alright, you learned enough," Daryl snapped at the boy as he was drying up with a towel she handed him. Glenn gave a sheepish smile at her.

"Who's in line for baths?" he asked her coyly.

"Scram!" Daryl yelled and Glenn gave a short cackle as he headed back to camp with the guitar. Louie bit the inside of her cheek from laughing as she looked down at the man sitting in front of her. Looking around for anybody near, she snatched the towel from his hands and threw it over her shoulder before straddling his lap. She ran her hands up his exposed chest and put her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his, feeling his hands rest on her hips. She liked the feeling of her bare legs pressed against his naked back as she wrapped them around his waist. She contemplated doing the dirty deed then and there if their tent wasn't so distant. When she pulled away she watched him give her a slow grin.

"Look at all those freckles," she marveled at his face from the proximity. "Are there any more, I wonder?" she glanced down at his shoulders.

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours," he purred into her cheek. She sighed and looked at him dreamily feeling euphoric in the moment.

"What would you do without me?" she asked sweetly. His smile dropped and he rolled his eyes.

"Prolly survive- ow! What the hell!" his face contorted into anger after she flicked his ear. Just as the anger faded, he gave her a devilish look.

"I'd be dead," he lowered his voice and pressed his forehead against hers. "'Cuz I wouldn't have a reason to come back when I didn't find Merle."

"Ding ding ding," she whispered before laying her lips on his neck. Daryl's head rolled back as he savored the feeling of the girl pressed against his body and catering to his carnal, most basic needs.

Both relished the moment of intimacy not realizing that just 100 yards away, a brick that lay at the foundation of the survivors' establishment would be pulled causing the debilitation of the group as a unit.

Sophia's disappearance would no longer be a mystery.

The group's unity would no longer be preserved. Everyone's relationship would be tested.

Especially that of a Georgian man and Michigan girl.


	12. It's Me Or Her

"You alright?" Daryl asked Louie as she let go of the Hershel's zombie wife. Shane had brought a massacre on the Greene property by breaking the barn's lock and opening fire on all the walkers. Sophia was one of them including Hershel's wife and step-son. His blonde daughter, hysterical, had run to the corpse to mourn over her body unsuspecting her to reanimate and try to eat her. In a frenzy everyone jumped to rescue the blonde; Rick and Shane pulling the living girl off and Louie managing to hold the dead woman's arms to redirect its hunger. The walker started going after Louie, gripping right back onto her until Andrea jammed a scythe right through its head. Louie, shocked and breathless, let go of the body and stepped back unharmed when Daryl reached her.

"I'm okay," she breathed and looked at him. "Go," she said patting his arm shakily. Carol had ripped out of his arms and trapped herself in the RV right after the execution of Sophia. Louie knew that Daryl, the most dedicated to finding her little girl, would be able to offer comfort if any. Daryl looked solemnly at her unmoving but Louie grabbed the back of his neck and pressed a forceful kiss to his forehead. The notion gave him strength to leave her and head towards the RV.

The Greene family, stricken with grief retreated to the house in tears and shock. Shane in anger followed them, throwing blames and accusations that frankly could have been discussed at any other time. Rick naturally followed trying to deter Shane from harming anyone and Glenn joined out of pure concern for Maggie. Lori sat on the ground with her son talking in hushed voices, no doubt trying to console the child on the death of his dear friend. T-Dog, Andrea, Dale and Louie were left with the bodies. Andrea emerged from the barn, making sure no walker was left behind _alive_ and came out with a blanket approaching Louie and Sophia's body. Louie outstretched her hand and helped Andrea cover the little girl's body, carefully tucking her hands and head as if she were sleeping. Andrea looked to Louie with glassy eyes, but unwilling to cry. Louie cast down her gaze, remembering Andrea's pain of losing a kin. Louie stood up and helped T-Dog double check to make sure all the walkers had a bullet clean through the forehead so that they wouldn't have to worry about the dead rising _again_.

Shane was storming back to the barn with Rick, just a few yards away. Lori asked Dale to take Carl inside to rest and he complied. Rick came surveying the carnage that their sacrifices had led to with a forlorn look. Louie watched his soulless eyes and watched the broken man try to make sense of a world where little girls had to die twice.

"Want us to start burying?" T-Dog asked him.

"We need a service," Andrea sighed. "Carol would want that."

"Yeah we all want that," T-Dog muttered and looked down. Louie and the others looked at Rick who was despondent and distant.

"Let's uh, let's dig a grave for Sophia. A-and Hershel's wife and son," Louie pitched in, finding her voice shaky. Rick still looked calculating and hurt.

"Over by those trees," Lori added pointing to a shady spot close to the barn. "And we'll need a truck to move the bodies." Shane immediately stepped in and went to get the truck whereas the boy from Hershel's clan asked about the other bodies. He worried about the amount of digging.

"We bury the ones we love," Andrea echoed Glenn's angry words to Daryl when they faced a massacre similar to this at the quarry. "We burn the rest."

"Let's get to work," Lori prodded and everyone dispersed. Louie and Andrea went in the barn to retrieve a few shovels, leading the boy and T-Dog to the spot under the trees.

"What's your name?" Louie asked the tall boy with the cowboy hat.

"Jimmy," he replied softly and courteously.

"You're doing good, Jimmy," Louie said patting his shoulder tenderly and he seemed to find purpose when they started digging. Louie and Andrea worked on one hole, T-Dog one and Jimmy another. When Shane brought the truck around, he altered holes helping everyone. Quietly for a little over an hour, three large graves were dug. Everyone jumped out of their respective holes except for Louie who lingered a little.

"Louie?" she looked up to see Shane staring at her inquisitively.

"I can't help but think if anyone will do this for me when I go," she said distantly. She finally blinked a few times before grabbing hold of his outstretched hand.

"I can guarantee, when you kick the bucket as an old woman," he said as pulled her up. "Daryl will build a goddamn temple for you, girl," he joked half-heartedly. It brought little light to her heart and she smiled slightly. She helped lower the smallest corpse gently into the hole whereas the men and Andrea took the larger bodies. Soon, everybody started trickling in towards the graves ready to pay their respects. Daryl came with Lori and stood slightly distant from everyone else. He gave Louie a hard stare that seemed to beckon her. She obliged and stood by his side dutifully, not daring to touch him as he solemnly looked at the three graves. Everyone stood silently for ten minutes before Shane parted the group going straight to the truck. There was work to be done. Andrea and T-Dog followed. Daryl lifted his crossbow and headed to the tent. She would leave him alone for now. She was needed with the others. But the guilt finally won as she worked.

"You guys got this?" Louie asked almost ashamedly to the men.

"We'll be fine," Andrea nodded to her when the final body was stacked on the truck. She nodded and headed back to the campsite and was alarmed to see her tent gone. Missing completely. She heard a buzz and looked to see yelling coming from the brick tower where she was bathing Daryl not but hours ago. As she saw Daryl sit back down with a knife and sharp stick in his hands, she noticed the tent was there and Lori looking dejected.

"Lori?" Louie asked as the woman stomped past her. Lori wordlessly, jaw clenched waved her hand in anger retreating back to the house. "What was that? And why is our shit out here?"

"Got a fucking problem? Go take it to somebody else. I'm done helping," he sneered at her. She raised her eyebrows.

"Daryl fucking Dixon, do **not** use that tone with me,"

"Shut up," he dismissed her and she became livid.

"Listen here, asshole," she said snatching the knife out of his hands and tossing it away to stir him. "_You_ may have failed to find that girl but _I_ have her **blood** on my hands right now, you understand? So don't fucking tell me that I've got a problem that needs to go to somewhere else,"

"I'm sick n' tired of all of y'all dumb women coming to me to fix your shit!" he yelled pointing an aggressive finger at her.

"Fine!" she screamed. "Fuck _you_! You don't have to worry about anybody coming to you again!" she made it a few large strides away before Daryl grabbed her arm.

"Where you goin'?" he snarled. She froze staying still before dangerously looking at him.

"Let. Go. Of me. Right now," her voice became deep and disturbed.

"You're always on my goddamn case about- shit!" he cussed as Louie quickly struck her head forward and head-butt his face. He quickly let go of her and raised a hand to his eyebrow. Before Louie could get far, he sprinted and tackled her, lifting her and dragging her back to their campsite. She flailed and screamed; Daryl used his other hand to cover her mouth but only managed to push her up against a tree that was blocked by the brick tower.

"Calm down," he growled as they both struggled with each other trying to dominate the other's strength. Daryl was obviously winning but both stopped, breathing heavily when he had her pinned.

"Why is it always my fault?" she whispered shakily before her face contorted and tears started to fall. Daryl looked at her disgustedly.

"What're you talkin' about?" he asked letting her go. She remained leaning against the tree for stability.

"Every time something goes wrong," she sobbed. "You get angry and _I_ have to suffer like it was my fault,"

"Hey," he said harshly and brought her chin in his hand to lift her face up. "I take care of you plenty. Got it? N' you do the same for me," he said and she looked at him tearfully. "That's the way it works."

"Then why do you keep pushing me out?" She asked him, her lip quivering. "I can't do this by myself Daryl. I can't," she stopped for a moment before looking at him seriously. Her voice became stony, "And neither can Carol." He looked at her confused. "It's me or her Daryl,"

"You jealous?" he asked incredulously.

"Of course not," she cried. "I _know_ you're not sticking your tongue down her throat. I know that. But she's alone. And she's been through what I've been through. And you… you're good at saving people," she said slowly. "But you can't save both of us," she whispered. He looked at her, his face slowly falling into realization. And when he didn't say anything she went to move away.

"It's you, okay?" he coaxed her, grabbing her arms and bringing her back gently. "It's you n' me Lou. Just us," he muttered smoothing her hair down. A few more tears fell before she nodded and buried her face in his neck. She lifted her face and brought his mouth to hers in urgency.

"Show me," she whispered. Staring at her with determination, he bent down and scooped her in his arms and carried her to the tent.


	13. I Guess It's Her

Louie stared at the ceiling of the tent wondering if the past hour had just happened. Did she really just sleep with him? Did he really sleep with her? It was hot, no doubt in her mind. They both enjoyed it immensely but the context almost seemed wrong. The last time they had a fight he ended up kissing her. This time they ended up sleeping together. Next, they'll end up with a baby. The context seemed wrong, especially in a time where they both were feeling vulnerable but beggars can't be choosers. Who knows when the next time they'd get a chance to have sex again? Sex. She never realized how much she missed it even though she was getting it forcibly almost a month ago. But that was different. She missed actually _having sex._ All these thoughts swam through her mind as her eyes were widely trained straight ahead. She turned her eyes without moving her head and saw Daryl sitting half up fussing over himself still.

"I can't believe you bit me," he muttered trying to examine his bicep but unable to see fully.

"I said I was sorry," she said meekly, her nose wrinkling apologetically. "Heat of the moment?"

"Yeah maybe a lil' too much," he grumbled.

"You weren't complaining before," she tried to keep herself from smiling as she turned over on her belly to look at him. He dropped his arm and stared back at her silently before running his hand through her hair like a pet. She traced her palm over his stomach gliding over his sternum before placing a kiss over his naval which he would never admit, but caused his stomach to turn.

"I think you could use another tattoo," she smirked at him and he raised an eyebrow.

* * *

"We can't find Lori,"

"At least give me a day," Louie groaned to herself as she lifted her head. It was dark out now and Daryl was outside kindling the fire for their dinner. He had caught a few squirrels within mere feet of their tent without blinking an eye. Of course Louie stayed in the tent, still naked tucked in the blanket after inking the man she had slept with. The evening felt so surreal. That morning everything was fine, the afternoon brought death, and the evening brought passion. Louie had sat in her underwear straddling the naked man (who only adorned a blanket) on his pelvis and was hunched over his abdomen, tattooing his ribs with a sewing needle and pen she had cracked in the glow of the setting sun. It was simple.

_M.L_

"Shoulda done that pictur'a you on that bike," he smirked; wincing when she poked a little too hard.

"I didn't do that smartass," she mumbled, sitting up to brush her hair out of her face. "But I guess I'll always find myself on the back of a motorcycle, no matter where I am."

Daryl looked at the woman sitting half naked on his body through half-lidded eyes and let his eyes roam, feeling incredibly lustrous.

"You ever gonna tell me?" he said running a hand down the sides of her thigh. She rolled her eyes and leaned back down to continue prick small black dots in his skin to make one big picture. "Glenn told us he was crazy 'bout you,"

"He was," she muttered. "Crazy, that is."

"_Excuse me? Miss?"_

Louie looked up through a curtain of her hair due to the chilling wind that was tossing her mane around.

"_You dropped this," he flashed her a crooked grin, not displaying any teeth but his deep laugh lines etched into the flesh of his face. Louie glanced down at his hand and saw that he had her keys in his open palm. She quickly snatched them trying not to make skin contact and when she looked at him he never batted an eye._

"_Thanks," she said briskly before continuing her walk to University of Michigan's library. A few hours later, when she emerged from the cocoon of learning, she couldn't help but notice that amongst other random loiterers, the same man that had found her keys was lingering outside idly, leaning against a stone wall not as if he were waiting for someone but as if he belonged there; attached to the wall as a permanent fixture. Though it was a dreary day and almost the entire city of Detroit looked like a funeral, he caught her attention in his omniscient attire; his long skeletal legs clung to his black jeans and his black jacket hanging off his sinewy frame. The clothes he wore matched his moppy hair that framed his face and slanted eyes. His full pink lips contrasted with his pale face and black hair._

_She allowed herself to look at him for a second while she passed him and his eyes followed her and when he nodded to her politely, she turned away._

_Two days later, she rounded the street to return to the library to work on an analysis paper that was due in a few days. That day changed her life._

"_Do you come here often?" _

_It was him. He had the same crooked grin and with his joking tone he still was an intimidating figure. Louie didn't bother to stop but kept walking and he matched her pace._

"_I didn't drop anything did I?" she quipped._

"_I- need to talk to you," he finally said, his deep voice stopping her. She looked at him quizzically and suspiciously._

"_Do I know you?" she asked tentatively. He only stared at her with his intense stare, jaw locked, breathing steadily. "I… should be going," Louie said nervously and started to move towards the library. She was relieved he didn't follow her this time. But when she exited the building he was leaning against the same stone wall, this time cigarette poised in his mouth, smoke flooding out in creamy clouds. Though she saw him and knew he saw her, she walked with purpose straight past him. _

"_You dropped this."_

She spun around and saw his open palm inches away from her face, her keys resting treacherously.

"_You pinched it from me," she said quietly before gingerly taking the keys. The corner of his lips turned._

"_Very good." He walked past her and turned his head slightly to give her a sharp nod implying that she should follow. She did._

"_Why are we here?" Louie asked him when they finally arrived to the infamous mural alley that connected two parallel streets of Detroit. A few tourists a few yards down were observing a spray painting and taking pictures. The man leaned against a wall where a picture of the world exploding was blooming into roses. He crossed his arms across his chest and looked at her almost adoringly for a few moments._

"_Because," he started. "I want you to know that my art was born from the moment I saw you," he finally said in deep, distant voice. Louie's face fell into confusion and disbelief._

"_You're an artist?" she asked incredulously._

"_I am now," he bowed his head. She was silent in trying to figure out what his motive was. She stared at the work that he was leaning against. He hadn't just picked any random piece; **that was his**._

"_What do you want from me?" she asked. He lifted his eyes without disturbing his head and smirked, staring at her like a wolf. He finally lifted his head and gave a romantic sigh._

"_Your support, advice, dreams, thoughts, companionship and good graces," he ticked off his imaginary list with a goofy smile. She didn't look pleased and looked skeptically around her for the quickest escape route._

"_Do you trust me?"_

"_I don't know you."_

"_Would you like to?" _

_She stared at his open hand and then his hardened face. Without breaking the stare, she took his hand and he led her away from the alley and down a few streets until they reached an empty parking lot. They crossed the lot and walked up to an abandoned warehouse that had an eerie and haunted façade. Louie immediately halted once the man showed intention of entering._

"_I would never hurt you."_

_When the two entered the warehouse hand in hand, Louie's face fell into shock. There must have been hundreds of people dressed in leather jackets and torn clothes, spikes, black boots and adorning a very grunge art look. When a few people caught sight of the man she was lacing fingers with, they cheered. Soon everyone was cheering at his presence. Louie looked at his face as he scanned the party authoritatively. He didn't smile but had a royal air to his way. He led her to the back of the warehouse which ended up being the front of the party where a group of people were seated in armchairs and sofas. Louie was amazed at the carefree youths drinking out of champagne bottles and lighting sparkler fireworks. Unfamiliar music was blaring, giving most of the people an excuse to dance._

"_Christopher, looks you finally got your mind off that muse of yours," a white haired girl smirked at the pair, holding a tall flute glass of champagne in her fingers aristocratically. The people seated on the cushioned seats were obviously the elite of the entire place. Louie looked at the man who's hand she was holding realizing that she had just learned his name. Christopher didn't say anything but his grin widened._

"_No," the platinum haired girl's face fell into disbelief. She stared at Louie with shock and didn't look away. Louie felt self-conscious at her scrutiny._

"_Fey, you're making my guest uncomfortable," he drawled in a whimsical tone, unlocked their fingers and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, leading her to a couch unoccupied and secluded. Louie didn't let his proximity go unnoticed when they seated. He allowed her to look at her surroundings in awe and amazement._

"_This is my world," he said lowly facing her, his arm draped across the back of the couch. Though she was still observing the dynamics of the chaos, she could feel him staring at her intently._

"_You still haven't told me what you wanted from me," she turned her face to meet him nose to nose. She found her eyes involuntarily becoming half-lidded._

"_You don't get it," he whispered. "I surrender myself to you."_

_From then on, his admirers called her the Mary Magdalene of Detroit. She was always with him, wherever he went standing stoically and piercingly behind him. But both knew that he abdicated his entirety to her. He belonged to her completely. He was her slave. In his moments of madness when she left him in their uncommon fights, he painted his most brilliant piece that was to stand against the grain of time. _

Daryl asked her if she loved him. She said she did. But she also said that none of that mattered now. Daryl, placed one hand on her head and raked his fingers through her hair as she continued to prick his skin. She paused briefly to look up at him, giving him a cheeky smile. He returned it by pulling her forward for a brief kiss before she continued her artwork.

* * *

Now Carol was haunting their heaven bringing reality of hell to their doorstep.

"And the others aren't back yet either," she panted. Louie sat up. Others? Who left? If Lori had left it would be because Carl or Rick was gone. Jesus.

"That dumb bitch musta' gone off lookin' for 'em," she heard Daryl mutter. Louie frowned. He knew? How could he know and not have done anything? Louie's thoughts were verbalized when Carol asked, "What?"

"Yeah, she asked me to go. Told 'er I was done bein' an errand boy."

Louie's heart stopped. _He didn't say that_, she breathed.

"And you didn't say anything?" Carol asked incredulously. There was no response. Suddenly Carol's footsteps were passing the tent until it stopped in front of the entrance. The women locked eyes. Carol looked in shock at Louie's appearance, clad in only a blanket. Louie tried to convey that she had no idea about his treachery but remained speechless like a deer caught in the headlights. Carol mustered courage and stomped back to Daryl.

"Don't do this," she pleaded. "Please? I've already lost my girl."

Louie's jaw dropped. She got on her knees to start dressing so she could give Carol a piece of her mind. How was she still trying to weasel her way into Daryl's life? She stopped at the sound of Daryl's defiance.

"And that wasn't my problem, neither," he spat. Louie didn't have time to feign sleep as Daryl entered their tent looking livid. He froze when he saw that the girl he had slept with was no longer asleep. He clenched his jaw and looked away, his sight on Carol still lingering around the camp.

"Why doesn't she fuckin' get it?" he growled and left the tent once more before Louie could get in a word. "What're you doin'?" he demanded, catching her off guard looking at his squirrel display. Louie watched from the window in the glow of the fire.

"Keepin' an eye on you."

"Ain't you a peach," he muttered.

"I'm not gonna let you pull away. You've earned your place."

"If you spent half yer time mindin' yer daughter's business than stickin' yer nose in errybody else's, she'd still be alive!"

"Go ahead."

"Go ahead n' _what_?"

Silence.

"Man, just go! I don't wantchu' here! You're a real piece of work lady. What're you gonna make this 'bout my daddy or some crap like that? You don't know jack. Yer afraid. Yer afraid 'cuz yer all alone! Got no husband. No daughter. You don't know what to do with yerself. You ain't my problem! _Sophia wasn't mine!_ _WHY COULDN'T YOU JUST KEEP AN EYE ON HER!_"

Tears poured from Louie's face as she heard Daryl rant. He revealed things he never told her. He reveled in his feelings to this woman even through anger. Daryl couldn't pick Louie without it killing him. She sobbed silently into her hand, watching Carol turn and him retreat back into their tent. He was breathing heavily and looked at her wildly.

"You monster," she gasped.

It happened within a second. His palm swung down and struck her cheek causing her to crash in momentum to the ground. Her shriek and the sound of the slap were the only two congruent sounds. She remained on the ground looking at the floor as they both tried to make sense of what happened.

"Baby-"

"Don't touch me," she said frigidly standing up.

"Lou I didn't-"

She tore out of the tent without her shoes and sprinted towards the house. She could feel her feet pressing into the earth's sharp stones and twigs but didn't stop until she reached the lights. She ripped through the living room where Andrea, Dale, Lori, Carol, Carl and Shane were sitting. They all stood up as she froze in the foyer looking like a madwoman.

"What happened to you?" Lori gasped approaching her. It appeared as if her disappearance wasn't a mystery anymore. Her cheek was starting to swell and a sharp pink imprint was left for everyone to see. Louie only stared at Carol with hard eyes.

"I ran into the door," she said flatly. Carol looked regretful and nervous. Everyone knew it was a lie. Nobody did anything more.


	14. Another Mouth

After Lori and Louie had pestered Shane the previous night, the next day the rest of the male campers were getting ready to search for Rick, Hershel and Glenn. Louie was almost in tears when she heard that Glenn was apart of the missing team. She stood on the porch with Carl at her hip, watching the men (sans Dale) and Andrea pack one of the SUVs. Daryl was amongst the group surprisingly, crossbow dutifully on his back. He looked stoically at the girl who was sporting a nasty shiner on her cheek. She stared unemotionally back. The night she had fled from their tent was the loneliest he had ever felt during the entire apocalypse. She had crawled her way into his life and he had destroyed everything with a bout of anger.

Suddenly a cloud of dust started rising from the end of the road. A red van was pulling in and Carl looked at Louie with indescribable happiness. Louie gave him a tight smile. Lori had emerged from the house and grabbing Carl by the hand and approached the van to greet the homecoming husband. Carol and Maggie also exited the door behind Louie, who had only stepped off the porch and glued to the bottom on the stairs. Maggie suddenly sprinted past everyone and when Hershel was ready to open his arms to his daughter, she went straight towards the not so welcoming Glenn. Hershel, taken aback and angry ordered Patricia to prepare the shed for surgery. Glenn, looking angry with Maggie, pushed off her happiness and walked over to Louie, who in turn opened her arms and enveloped him. She couldn't ignore that Maggie was staring shocked and hurt as the two embraced tightly.

"Don't go anywhere like that again," Louie whispered to him.

"What…" Glenn asked grazing her bruise. She flinched.

"Just don't go," she repeated and he nodded slowly before hugging her again.

"Who the hell is that?" T-Dog suddenly shouted and Louie ripped away from their embrace to see the intruder.

"That's Randall," Glenn explained, his arms still around the girl. Everyone except her in pure confusion and curiosity started to approach the car to see a man blindfolded looking sickly and injured. Suddenly Hershel emerged from the house with Patricia ordering a few men to grab the patient and looked at Louie.

"I'll need your help," he said to her expectantly. Louie sunk back into Glenn's grip.

"Me?" she asked worriedly.

"Just an extra set of hands is all," he said as T-Dog and Shane pulled the sobbing man from the car. He was just a boy! Louie nodded sharply. Glenn gave her a solemn look before nudging her off to follow Hershel. The hours that followed the surgery made Louie more aware how badly the group needed a doctor. The amount of blood lost and pain endured by the boy was enough to kill him but Hershel, with the help of Patricia and herself got the boy stitched up and knocked out cold.

"We couldn't just leave him behind," Rick explained. Everyone was seated in the dining room listening to the gruesome story that he was relaying. He stood at the head of the table, Lori and Carl at his right; Louie, Glenn, Dale and Carol on his left. Louie gripped Glenn's hand as she heard the details of the shootout. "He would have bled out. If he lived that long."

"What do we do with him?" Andrea piped up from her spot in front of the window, next to Shane. Hershel entered the room suddenly.

"I repaired his calf muscle as best I can but he'll probably have nerve damage. He won't be on his feet for at least a week," he explained to Rick.

"When he is," Rick answered Andrea's question. "We give him a canteen, take him out to the main road and send him on his way."

"Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea asked. At that moment, the door creaked open and Daryl entered the house quietly.

"It's a sacrifice," Louie spoke up keeping her eyes trained on Daryl. He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms across his chest and gave a curt nod to Carol. "We're leading him to the slaughters if we do," she mused.

"He'll have a fightin' chance," Rick offered.

"Just gonna let him go?" Shane finally spoke up. "He knows where we are." Everyone looked back to Rick.

"He was blindfolded the whole way here. He's not a threat," he retorted.

"Especially as a cripple," Louie mulled.

"Not a threat. How many of 'em were there? You killed three of their men, _took one of 'em hostage_, but they just ain't gonna come lookin' for us!" Shane sarcastically spat.

"They left him for dead. **No one** is looking," Rick roared.

"We should still post a guard," T-Dog added.

After a few more unhelpful snide comments from Shane and a severe reprimanding from Hershel, Shane had left the house in a huff. Rick immediately reassured everyone that no decision would be made today and dismissed the entire group. Everyone except Glenn and Louie stood up to disperse. The girl watched Daryl flee the house before Carol could get in a word. Carol immediately followed his path.

"You wanna talk about it?" Glenn murmured, tucking her hair behind her ear. She was silent before her voice cracked.

"She's taking him away from me," she hoarsely managed.

"Carol?" Glenn asked incredulously. Louie sighed and bowed her head.

"She, I don't know. She's trying to replace Sophia and Ed with Daryl and… I just. Whatever," she said in frustration trying not to make a shitty situation sound worse.

"Can I talk to you?" a third voice asked. Maggie stood glaring at the two. Louie hesitantly let go of Glenn's hand and rose to get up giving him a nervous look. She left the room silently hearing their footsteps graduate somewhere else in the house. She moved to bask in the Georgia heat and sun but found it only irritating and bothersome. Normally she would go back to her own tent and wait for Daryl to get back so they could have dinner or do something productive. But she was no longer welcome there. Going to the larger campsite was also out of the question as long as Carol was lingering. She decided to go off and take a walk around the property to buy some time. When it was evening, she slipped off to the barn and went to sleep in some hay that was on the landing above. She watched Daryl's fire in the distance burn and watched the smoke rise into the sky before she went to sleep.

She spent the next few days sleeping in the loft, watching and observing everyone from her spot. She saw Rick and Shane return with Randall. She saw them drag him to a slaughter shed and heard his cries as he was shackled up. She joined the anxious group, everyone looking at her astonished when she joined.

"Where've you been?" Rick asked approaching her. His head craned back as he took a glimpse at her shiner. "Where'd this come from?" he asked briefly before cupping her ear and caressing the bruise.

"It ain't illegal to beat a woman no more, Rick. There ain't a law-" Shane started squawking.

"Why don't you just shut your damn mouth before I do it for you," Louie snapped back at the man, tired of him running around thinking he could do whatever he wanted.

"And how you plan on doing that?" he asked his tone turning dangerous, obvious that he didn't like her tone.

"Take another step and you'll find out," she gathered spit in her mouth and spat it ceremoniously at his feet. Rick placed a hand on Shane's chest, keeping him at bay. He turned to look at Louie.

"You alright?" he asked her as if she would give one word and there would be hell to pay. She rolled her eyes and patted his arm lightly before taking a stand next to Glenn, slipping her hand around his arm and hugging it close to her.

"It make you feel better if you told us the plan?" Lori broke the tense silence by pouring some coffee into the mug.

"Is there a plan?" Andrea asked skeptically.

"Are we going to keep him here?" Louie asked with raised eyebrows.

"We'll know soon enough," Rick drawled and with a single nod he alerted everyone's attention to the Dixon man approaching the group, a bloodied hand gripping his bow. He gave her a single glance, no more.

"Boy there's got a gang. Thirty men. Heavy artillery. And they ain't lookin' to make friends. They roll through here, and our boys are dead."

Louie's blood went cold and she tightened her grip on Glenn.

"And our women. They're gonna… they're gonna wish they were."

Glenn returned the grip.

"What did you do?" Carol asked him.

"Had a little chat," he muttered.

"No_one_ goes near this guy," Rick barked. Lori approached him and asked him gently what he was going to do. "We have no choice. He's a threat. We have to eliminate the threat."

"You're just gonna kill him?" Dale guffawed.

"It's settled. We'll do it today," Rick stormed off with Dale trailing him. Glenn and Louie traded glances looking nervous.

"We can't kill him," she breathed.

"We can't let him live," he shook his head.

"Why not? Why can't we just keep him here? He'll earn his share of the work-"

"And what if he escapes?" Andrea added into their conversation. Louie licked her dry lips and sighed.

"I can't deny that it's risky. But _killing_ a man? _A boy_? It doesn't feel right," Louie shook her head.

"Surviving feels right around here," she said before going to take her place on top of the RV.

* * *

Dale tried to reason with each member of the group, first going to Daryl.

"The whole point of me comin' up here is to get away from you people," he snorted when he saw the older man approach him.

"It's gonna take more than that," Dale replied.

"Carol send ya?" he hesitated.

"Carol's not the only one concerned about you," Dale hinted. "It's definitely not Louie after you put a number on her."

"Shut your damn mouth right now before I make you," Daryl stood up offensively. His guilt was eating at him continuously since she had left. He didn't bother confronting her. He knew he did wrong. He figured she was better off without him anyways. And he, her.

"You and her are more alike thank you think," Dale mused at his anger. "But especially you're new role in the group."

"I don't need my head shrunk. This group's broken. I'm better off fendin' for myself," he said adjusting his bows that he had been carving religiously.

"You act like you don't care."

"Cuz I don't."

"So live or die, you don't care what happens to Randall?"

"Nope."

"Why not stand with me? Try to save the kid's life." He didn't respond. "It doesn't really matter one way or another."

"Didn't peg you as a desperate sonofa'bitch," he said adjusting his jacket as the weather was starting to turn cold. His shivers didn't need to get in the way of a hunt.

"Your opinion makes a difference."

"Ain't nobody lookin' at me for nothin'."

"Louie is." Daryl froze. "And I am. Right now! And obviously you have Rick's ear."

"Rick just looks to Shane. Let him," he trotted back to Dale before turning back around.

"You cared about what happened to Sophia," Dale finally said causing Daryl to stop once more. "Cared what it meant to the group. What it meant to Carol. To Rick. To Louie-"

"Use her name again one more time," Daryl warned.

Dale continued, "Torturing people? That isn't you! You're a decent man. So is Rick. Shane… is different."

"Why is that? 'Cuz he killed Otis?" he reveled in his observation to Dale making him freeze with shock. Daryl only made his final claim about the broken group and left the old man standing where he left him.

* * *

Louie approached the young boy who was sitting at Sophia's grave looking solemnly at the ground.

"Hey," she said nudging his bottom with the toe of her boot. He looked up at her, squinting. She took a seat next to him, leaning against her palms.

"Do you think she's in a better place?" Carl asked her. Louie almost laughed.

"At your age I would think about lunch rather than philosophy," she chuckled. He didn't laugh. "I think…" she trailed off trying to choose her words carefully. "I think she **needs** to be in a better place. **We** need her to be, that is," Louie finally said. He nodded looking back at the ground.

"You know we'll see Sophia again in heaven someday," a pleasanter voice said. Louie rolled her eyes and didn't bother to look up. "She's in a better place," she said. Louie felt like laughing. How fucking ironic. She wondered what Carl's reaction would be.

"No she's not."

That, apparently.

"Heaven is just another lie. And if you believe it? You're an idiot!" and with that he ran off. Carol looked at Louie's bemused face with shock as if she couldn't believe she had just heard the little boy tell her off.

"Kids these days," Louie finally said, her voice and face becoming serious. "Don't know what they'll say next."

Carol's lip turned as she saw the Grimes couple exiting the barn. "You need to control that boy!" she marched up to them in frenzy. Louie watched with a smug smile as the situation escalated with Carol's cries. Standing up and feeling a little better about herself, she treaded back to the campsite where Dale was pacing.

"No luck?" She asked. He looked at her wildly.

"You have to talk to Rick," he said desperately. "He'll listen to you."

She looked at him helplessly. "I don't know if he will," she said slowly and Dale's face fell. "But I'll try. I'm on your side Dale. I'm always on your side," she said and he melted.

"You are the one light that shines on this place Louie," he said cupping her cheek. She smiled and embraced him. They were called into the Green house for a group meeting. Soon everyone trickled into the house, until everyone was present and everyone was silent.

"So how do we do this?" Glenn piped up from the piano bench. "Just take a vote?"

"Does it have to be unanimous?" Andrea asked.

"Majority rules?" another asked.

"Let's just see where everybody stands," Rick cut in. "And then we can talk through the options."

Shane voiced his obnoxious opinion to which Dale rejected immediately.

"Kill him? Right? Why even bother to take a vote it's clear which way the wind's blowing," Dale said hopelessly.

"Well if people believe we should spare him, I want to know," Rick growled.

"Well I could tell you it's a small group," he said looking down at Louie. She took his hand delicately and gave it a squeeze. "Maybe just me, Louie and Glenn." He looked down at Asian who gave him a nervous stare. Louie's heart dropped.

"Look. I think you're right about everything all the time but this-"

"You're just scared!" Dale yelled.

"He's not one of us! And we've… we've lost too many people already," Glenn said weakly. Dale wrenched his hat nervously.

"How about you?" he asked pointing to the Greene clan. "Do you agree with this?"

"Couldn't we continue keepin' him a prisoner?" Maggie asked.

"Just another mouth to feed," Daryl muttered from behind everyone.

"Why'd we take me in then?" Louie spoke up to Dale's relief. "I was just _another mouth_." Daryl's lips tightened as he stared right at her.

"It could be a mean winter," Hershel spoke up.

"We could ration better," Lori added.

"He could be an asset! Give him a chance to prove himself!" Dale pleaded. That idea was quickly shot down due to the fact that he couldn't be left alone to walk around by himself and nobody was willing to escort him constantly.

"I'll do it," Louie offered. "I don't have enough to do around here anyways." Daryl stiffened.

"Nobody will go near him," Rick said staring her down. Soon other ideas of risking him as a member of the group were looking dim as well for fear that he would go back to his old murderous group.

"So we'll kill him because he didn't do anything yet?" Louie practically screamed.

"If we do this," Dale murmured. "We're saying there is no hope. Rule of law is dead. There is no civilization." Shane rolled his eyes and muttered something sarcastic. Louie leaped forward to grapple at him, itching to bleed him under her fist. Everyone became erect as Glenn wrapped his arms around her waist from reaching him. After the fiasco had settled down, other ideas of abandoning the boy were also shot down due to risk of losing their own. Patricia asked what the method of execution would be if they went through with it. Rick and Shane went back and forth for the method until Dale piped up-

"Hey, hey, hey! We're talking about it as if it's been decided!"

"We've been talkin' all day. Goin' around in circles and we'll go around in circles again," Daryl shook his head.

"This is a young man's life!" Dale shouted.

"And it's worth more than a five minute conversation," Louie added dismally. Dale went on a rant about the way the group tortured and was willing to execute the young boy.

"We're no better than those people that left him," Louie muttered. Shane tried to coax her but Rick interjected by agreeing with them, causing her heart to lift. Andrea argued with Shane and Rick tried to say something once more making Dale cry out in anger.

"Stop it!" Carol cried, silencing everyone. "Everyone arguing and fighting. I didn't ask for this,"

"Yeah you should've thought of that before you ruined my sanity, you fucking hypocrite," Louie spat causing Dale and Rick to calm her down. Daryl bowed his head.

Carol remained steadfast, "You can't ask us to decide for something like _this_. Please decide. Either of you, both of you. But leave me out," she shrugged.

"Not speaking out. Or killing him yourself. There's no difference," Dale's voice started to waver. Rick asked if anybody had anything to say. Everyone was silent for a moment.

"You said it yourself, we don't kill the living," Louie pleaded.

"That was before the living tried to kill us," Rick stepped towards her. Dale went on to talk about a world not worth living in if survival of the fittest is what it came down to. He asked for support. Everyone was silent again.

"He's right. We should try to find another way," Andrea said gently. Louie let out a breath of air in relief but nobody else spoke up. Dale left the house in tears mentioning to Daryl that the group was indeed broken. Louie gave everyone a disgusted look pausing at Rick who met her glare apologetically and followed Dale.

"I'm so sorry," she said to him as he leaned against the RV in an emotional wreck. He grabbed her hands and gave a weak smile.

"You have never done me any wrong Mary Lou," he smiled tearfully. He headed off by himself and Louie found no reason to follow, deciding to give him time off to himself.

An hour later. There were screams. Louie tried to break through the group but only managed to get captured by Daryl.

"Don't look," he rasped trying to contain her. This only made her more determined to see what had happened. Her mouth fell open into a scream but no noise escaped.

"No," she rasped, her voice hoarse and inaudible. Dale was on the ground, his organs falling out of his stomach, spewing everywhere. Daryl was still trying to grab her arms but she was at flailing and slipping away. She fell to his side and started sobbing. "Do something!" She screamed, her voice cracking and breaking. She could barely see Dale's face with all the tears gathering in her eyes. "No, no, no! Please, please," she sobbed, her voice unrecognizable. "Take me instead. Please, God. No. Take me," her wretched voice cried as she grabbed his face that was contorted in pain. She almost didn't hear Hershel claim that there was nothing that could be done. She heard Andrea scream for someone to do something followed by an "oh God." She heard the sound of metal and squeezed her eyes shut.

Suddenly she was launched in the air, a body pressed to her back strong and heavy. She looked up and saw Daryl's back in front of her holding a gun to Dale face. She only heard her own scream rather than the gun's fire.

* * *

**I have a feeling I have one more in me guys. Next chapter will probably be the last. I'll try to get it out by Friday night?** **Thanks for your patience!**


	15. I'm Leaving

"Here,"

Louie silently let Daryl take the heavy box from her hands and moved to grab another. Hershel announced that the Atlanta survivors were to move in immediately into the Greene house for the winter to come. Except for Shane.

"I…" he started and she stopped and turned around slowly.

"You did what you had to do," she said despondently, not meeting his eyes. She seemed to hesitate. "I'm glad it was you," she finally said, her words hanging in the stiff air heavily. Her actions dreary and doleful went back to grabbing a box to shift into the new shelter. He watched her retreat in a lifeless manner before following with the box.

After the mercy killing of Dale, Rick had to physically drag Louie away from the body and back to the campsite. He himself was in tears at a loss of a cherished group member but had to put the living first now. Hershel had granted Rick to take her to the house to calm her down, her hysterics starting to become frightening. Rick carried her to the room where his son and the Dixon man had operations. He stayed with the younger woman, trying to muffle her cries of agony but only found himself weeping with her and apologizing out of pure guilt for lack of responsibility. The two didn't sleep, but only racked their bodies for tears, Louie's bawlings never decreasing. Unlike Carol, Louie did attend Dale's funeral, sitting cross legged near his grave, while everyone stood. She picked at the grass and stared at the patch of raised earth comatosely. Andrea ended up sitting with her silently for a few more hours after everyone left, the two commemorating the life of Dale Horvath.

Daryl now watched the empty shell of the girl that showed a day ago, so much vigor and love. She would be fine, he decided. She lost her home. She survived. She was brutally raped for two weeks on end. She recovered. Loss was a reoccurring role in everyone's life and wasn't going to ever end. She knew that. She would be fine.

After Louie set the box down with a sigh, she stood up and spun around and found herself immediately bouncing off a broad chest. With a wheezy breath, she realized T-Dog was enveloping her in his arms lifting her up in a giant hug. He set her down wordlessly and she patted him on the shoulder with a weak smile, "Get out of here, ya big softy," she joked but anyone could see the woe she was going through. With a sympathetic glance, he returned to helping store boxes in the Green house. Louie only wrapped her arms around her stomach and looked out the window where Rick was leaning over a map with Daryl. She studied the man's profile steadily. She wanted nothing but to be with him even if they weren't touching each other; she just wanted to be by his side. Why couldn't he admit his fault? He yielded from striking Carol but didn't think twice to hit her. She closed her eyes and repressed a shudder.

"Hey," she didn't have to look to know Glenn's voice. "You said you had piano fingers, right?"

At this, she turned her head slightly.

* * *

Louie's rendition of _Lacrimosa_ from Mozart's Requiem was interrupted by T-Dog ripping through the house, panting.

"He's _gone_."

Louie stood up immediately along with Glenn, the bench scraping the floor loudly. Even Maggie's sister who was watching the recital, Beth, was taken aback. They all looked at each other before the Greene girl went to find security in her father and the other two in their group. Glenn grabbed her hand and raced them outside behind T-Dog to see Andrea and Lori already ahead of them moving towards the shed where Randall was meant to be kept.

"How'd this happen?" Louie gasped as they briskly tried to keep up.

"I don't know," T-Dog breathed as they approached the group. "The lock was on 'n everythin'!" Daryl was observing the lock and door to see any forced exit. Hershel had also arrived on the scene looked disturbed.

"Cuffs are still hooked. Must'a slicked 'em," Rick said scouring the roof for any signs or clues to the disappearance. Louie gagged thinking about the amount of blood to have allowed that.

"Is that possible?" She asked in horror.

"It is if you've got nothing to lose," Andrea retreated from the shed at that moment.

"The shed was secured from the outside," Hershel said inspecting the door just as Daryl had.

"T-the roof? Could he have scaled the roof?" Louie asked starting to get frightened that Randall could be lurking around the home. Looking for revenge, possibly.

"No," Glenn said scanning the top of the shed. "Not injured, at least."

Suddenly a scream came from the woods. Everyone's heads snapped towards the direction seeing Shane's bloodied face emerge. "Rick! Rick!"

"What happened!" Lori yelled at the sight of the battered man.

"He's armed! He's got my gun!" His deep voice boomed shaking everyone's bones and instilling fear in everyone's hearts.

"You okay?" Carl asked.

"I'm fine. Lil' bastard snuck up on me and clocked me in th' face!" he marched over in anger. Rick sprung into action.

"OK, Hershel! T-Dog! Get everybody back in the house. Glenn, Daryl- come with us," Rick commanded.

"No," Louie whimpered slightly. Glenn gave her a hardened look and a nod before joining Rick and Shane. She gave a trembling look at Daryl and he only narrowed his eyes and tightened his lips. He understood that look she gave him.

_Be careful. Come back._

He nodded and stretched a bow ready in his weapon.

"Just let him go? That was the plan wasn't it? To let him go?" Carol asked.

"The plan was the cut him loose far away from here. **Not** in our front step with a gun!" He spat and unsheathed his own gun.

"Don't go out there! You don't know what could happen!" Carol pleaded. Louie brought one hand to her mouth and started biting her nails.

"Get everybody in the house! Lock all the doors and **stay put!**" Rick shouted before trekking off with the men. Louie felt a tug on her arm and saw Andrea grabbing at her.

"C'mon," she prodded and Louie gave a last fleeting glance at the troop before nodding slowly and allowed Andrea to drag her back to the house.

Night was starting to come quickly for some reason and the women didn't once leave the windows, staring into the dark abyss hoping to catch movement from somebody _living_.

"Why aren't they back yet?" Carol whimpered.

"For once I agree," Andrea muttered. Louie snorted and the two exchanged an understanding glance. Louie lowered her eyes before standing up and going to the kitchen for a glass of water.

"You okay?" Louie knew Andrea followed her in.

"Is anyone?" Louie laughed hollowly, turning around with a glass in her hand.

"I mean about… Dale," she hesitated. Louie looked away.

"Yes," she said quietly. "And no. It happened a few days ago and it feels like years."

"I know," Andrea sighed empathetically. "And there's no way to justify it. Like, I can't console myself or tell myself it'll be ok or that it was noble or some bullshit. Because it wasn't."

Louie nodded understandingly. The concept of death was skewed and messy.

"He didn't deserve it though...he, God-" her voice broke and she held her hand to her face to shield her pain.

"He loved you," Andrea looked up, remaining in her spot on the other side of the kitchen. Louie took her hand off her face and looked back at her.

"Same goes for you."

"I know. I just wish- I just wish I let him know that I knew."

"For the record…" Louie started. "I don't think you're a bitch. I mean, you are- but… you know."

Andrea gave a slow smile. "Yeah. I know,"

They were alright.

* * *

"Rick n' Shane get back?"

Louie grabbed onto Glenn the minute he stepped into the room. He nodded feverishly when she asked if they were ok.

"No," Lori answered.

"Heard a shot," Daryl frowned.

"Maybe they found Randall," Lori justified.

"We found him," Daryl said scanning the room and locking eyes with Louie.

"Is he back in the shed?" Andrea asked.

"He's a walker," he didn't break their gaze.

"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel frowned. Glenn fidgeted next to Louie.

"No. The weird thing is… he wasn't bit." Everyone frowned.

"His neck was broke," Daryl added. This didn't help the confusion.

"He fought back," Patricia said slowly.

"The thing is… Shane n' Randall's tracks were right on top of each other. N' Shane ain't no tracker. So he didn't come up behind 'em," Daryl said his thoughts aloud. "No, they were together."

"Would you please go back out there and find Rick n' Shane and find out what is going on?" Lori asked stepping right up to Daryl. This time Louie was the one to fidget. Daryl looked back at Louie before answering Lori.

"You got it."

The sound of the creaky screen door resounded in Louie's head and she had a bad feeling accompanying the Dixon man. Not a second too soon, the creaky screen door slammed open violently.

"Walkers!" he bellowed and everyone rushed outside to see the damage. As Louie grasped on to the porch pillar in horror, the barn suddenly went up in flames burning her eyes as she watched. Everyone shielded their faces from the explosion that had occurred out of nowhere. Once the initial burning had subsided, the amount of walkers that were visible from the illumination of the fire was clear. For a moment, fear took hold of the group and nobody moved as if staying still would eliminate the problem.

"There has to be hundreds!" Maggie cried out. Carol started sobbing along with Patricia and Beth.

"If ya can shoot'a gun, ya best be out there!" Daryl barked and marched down the steps. Andrea, T-Dog, Maggie, Jimmy, Glenn and Louie followed. When they reached the vehicles Daryl held his hand out.

"Lou, go back," he ordered.

"I can help," she pressed.

"You can't shoot worth a nickel. Nobody's gonna look out fer you," he said as T-Dog and Andrea claimed the truck. Daryl sighed and grabbed her elbow and led her a little away.

"I ain't got time fer all your whinin', so you best be here when I get back to get you," he grabbed her face and crashed his mouth against her lips in a hard and needing manner.

"On the back of a motorcycle," she breathed and he pulled away from her to mount his bike. She didn't need to be told twice as she sprinted back to the house where Hershel and the women remained trying to calm Lori down.

"Where's Carl?" She screamed frantically at Louie.

"What?" Louie gasped.

"He's not here!" she panicked madly.

"I'll check the attic," Beth offered.

"Cellar," Louie claimed as she sprinted to the kitchen and ripped down through the pantry which held a door for the cellar. She didn't think twice about the dangers that usually would haunt the normal person's mind when coming to a dark cellar.

"Carl?" Louie shouted as she scanned the darkened room. She let out a scream of fright as a broom fell in her path. "Where are you?" She shouted to the empty room. Even from underground, she could hear the gunshots resounding from outside. She returned, barely bumping into Beth who had no luck.

"We gotta get out of here. They're getting closer!" Patricia wailed as she looked through the planks of wood that barred the windows.

"Let's go," Louie nodded and the three came onto the porch where Carol was attempting to stop Lori from taking off to look for her son.

"That's my boy!" she screamed. Carol quickly talked her out of it and convinced them to leave. Hershel stood at the foot of his house, shotgun in hand, blaring off bullets left and right.

"Hershel!" Lori called him over and over again. He paid no attention; only remained shooting any walker that neared him. Louie tore down the steps and grabbed at his arm.

"C'mon!" she screamed her voice hoarsely. She led Hershel to the truck where Lori was in a fret. She climbed in the bed and hung on for dear life, eyeing the zombies that were getting closer.

"Carol took off that way!" she screamed. Andrea took off towards Carol who was being cornered by the shed. She shot at two walkers and they went down immediately.

"Look out behind you!" Carol cried. Andrea didn't miss a beat as she pivoted and took down the walker causing it to land on top of her.

"No!" Louie shrieked. Soon the truck was being overtaken by walkers, one grabbing at Louie's hair. "Drive!" She shrieked knowing what she was about to do was suicide. The truck took off and Louie tucked herself in a fetal position so that when the vehicle peeled away, she rolled off the bed and on the ground. A few hands grappled at her but she managed to jump up with adrenaline and sprint to the pinned Andrea.

"Run!" Louie cried and Carol didn't think twice to start running. Glancing behind her, she saw the blue truck slowly disappear off the property. "C'mon!" she groaned as she pulled the large zombified business man off of Andrea who was still alive. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she breathed and looked in a stunned panic at the fact that they were abandoned. "What do we do?" she asked hysterically.

"We run," Louie shouted. "We find the others. But we run, okay?" she asked and Andrea nodded ferociously. They grabbed each other's hand and took off towards the woods blindly hearing the groans and sound of their predators following.

"Fuck!" Louie shouted as she toppled to the ground, her chin colliding with the dirt. When she looked up, Andrea was gone in the darkness of the forest.

"Louie! Louie!"

"Where are you!" Louie cried standing up. She turned around and saw a few walkers headed towards her.

"I can't see you!" Andrea shouted back frantically from somewhere around her, her voice ricocheting and echoing.

"J-just run!" Louie screamed, trying not to reveal the tremor in her voice.

"Where are you?"

"Run!" she screamed and didn't hear a response.

Louie was alone.

* * *

Daryl stared at the burning barn with disdain. It was completely overtaken by walkers and there was no way he could get in there from any angle. The sound of a screaming woman caught his ears and he didn't waste time to start his engine and follow the cries. It was to his disappointment he found Carol crying and screaming with a few zombies following her sound and scent.

"Fuck," he cursed. "C'mon! I ain't got all day!" he yelled and Carol pathetically climbed on to the back of his bike. He glanced back at the deserted farmhouse that was a skeleton of memories.

He took off with the wrong woman on the back of his bike.

Their best bet was the highway where they all had once agreed as a meeting point when Sophia was missing. He swerved and maneuvered them through the fog of zombies and abandoned gas stations trying to find any main road. Not stopping once, he drove until the sky started to lighten up and the sun began to rise. Finally finding the highway, he slowly coasted the crowded road. His eye caught a skateboard abandoned haphazardly on the divider. Seeing a moving truck up ahead he sped up and parked the bike alongside the rest of the caravan. Carol unmounted and went to rejoice with the survivors. Rick and his son were reunited with Lori. Hershel's daughters were with their father once more.

Daryl climbed off his bike and scanned the flurry of people for the right face.

"Where'd you find everyone?" Rick asked a moment.

"This guy's tail lights zig-zagin' all over the road. Figured he had to be Asian drivin' like that," Daryl crossed his arms. Glenn rolled his eyes and laughed. "Where the rest of us?" Daryl frowned.

"We're the only ones who made it so far," Rick replied. Daryl frowned.

"Shane?" Lori asked. Rick shook his head.

"Andrea?" Glenn asked.

"She saved me and then I lost her," Carol lowered her voice.

"Where's Louie?" Glenn's voice started to rise. He began to pace. "Where is she!" He yelled.

"She," Lori lowered her gaze. "She was on the back of the truck. We turned around and she wasn't there anymore."

Daryl clenched his jaw and glared at the ground.

"Sh-she went after Andrea after she went down trying to save me. She told me to run," Carol added.

"Andrea's alive?" Rick asked. Carol was silent.

"We saw her go down," T-Dog offered sadly.

"Louie's alive then?" Glenn barked.

"I don't know," Carol offered meekly.

"No!" Glenn roared and clutched his head. Maggie rushed to his side and held him as he shook. Rick bowed his head and his wife held him tightly knowing that they were grieving together for the loss of Dale before the invasion. Carol watched Daryl's reaction from the corner of her eye. His arms were still folded across his chest and his eyes were squinting at the sky. Everyone was silent for their losses.

"_I guess I'll always find myself on the back of a motorcycle, no matter where I am"_

"_You best be here when I get back to get you,""On the back of a motorcycle."_

"We gotta go look for her," Glenn said weakly through his tears.

"Did you definitely see her?" T-Dog asked Carol.

"There were walkers everywhere," Carol replied.

"I'm gonna go back," Daryl decided, climbing onto his bike.

"No," Rick stopped him.

"We can't just leave her," Daryl barked.

"We don't even know if she's there," Lori said.

"She isn't there. She isn't," Rick pressed. Daryl mulled it over. He was right. Louie wasn't stupid enough to stay there and get eaten alive. "She's somewhere else or she's dead. There's no way to find her."

"We're not even gonna look for her?" Glenn shouted obviously distressed.

"We gotta keep movin'," The hurt was evident in Rick's voice. "Walkers crawlin' all over here."

"I say head east," T-Dog offered.

"Stay off the main roads," Daryl added. Glenn was disgusted in his calmness over the loss of Louie. "The bigger the roads, the more walkers," he grabbed his crossbow. "More assholes like this one. I got it," he shot the silent zombie that was creeping along, right in the eye his bottled anger released in the arrow.

After driving for a while and lost in his thoughts all the while, Daryl felt sick and was starting to get a headache. A horn broke him of his thoughts and was reminded that the body behind him was Carol and not Louie. The group discovered to be low on gas and camped on the side of the road for the night. Everyone watched helplessly as Rick was starting to crack under the pressure and he finally blew up on everyone that night over the fire. He had admitted his secret that Jenner had relied on him about the infection and had admitted to murdering Shane. The women started to fear him and what was left of the men were nervous. Their leader was broken.

Daryl started to think about where he would go if he took up Rick's offer on anybody abandoning the group. He would look for Louie, no doubt. Where would he start?

"_On the back of a motorcycle."_

"I'm goin'," Daryl finally said in the midst of the tense silence. Carol protested and a few others muttered disagreement. Rick stared at him with boiling anger.

"You don't know she's alive," Rick spat knowing well what he was trying to do.

"She's alive," Daryl maintained his cool.

"Where would you look," Rick asked condescendingly hoping to deter him. Daryl stared back calmly.

"Michigan."

* * *

She quickly came to her senses when the rustle of dragging feet on the ground shook her. She started running through the thickets, pivoting and running in any direction away from the sound of groans. If she wasn't so scared and on the verge of having a heart attack, she would have felt stupid running like a chicken with its head cut off. Running for what felt hours, Louie contemplated death. She had no idea where she was. No matter how long she ran or where she turned, every place looked the same. The forest was going to devour her.

The thought of Daryl, alive somewhere, kept her going. The thought of Glenn and Rick and the others _alive_ somewhere kept her going. The thought that there was human life out there **kept her going**.

She stopped running after the number of walkers following her had dwindled down and she personally mutilated the last persistent one with a large rock. She tried to rack her brains of what to do; how to survive. She needed to find a main road and get out of this god forsaken forest, she decided. How, though. She looked around and picked a tree that seemed to be the tallest. Sniffling her sorrows aside, she grabbed hold of the bark with her fingers and hiked her foot at an angle that would help her lift herself up. She climbed in this manner up the tree until she sat herself on a branch to rest. She almost shrieked when she saw the amount of zombies just a few yards off, scouring the forest for food. When she composed herself, she silently climbed up a few more branched until she felt that she was at the highest height safely.

And from up there she spotted a road. And up the road, a glow of a fire.

* * *

Rick had brought Daryl aside to talk to him privately.

"I can't let you go," Rick lowered his voice and put his hand on Daryl's shoulder. The man didn't take a liking to that and frowned, ripping his shoulder from underneath the touch.

"Man, you don't own me," he snarled. Rick put his hands up in defense.

"We _need_ you here, Daryl. You're the best to survive and fight out of all of us. If you leave, we don't stand a chance," Rick hissed.

"Not my concern," he mumbled.

"After all we've been through? Just like that, you're gonna take off?" Rick asked incredulously, panicking internally at the prospect of their best man leaving.

"Lou's out there," Daryl said looking down the darkened road. "She's alive. I know she is." He looked back at Rick. "I ain't gonna complain if you come with me. But you can't stop me."

Rick closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose. "Michigan is far north, Dixon. It's gonna get colder. Christ, we don't even know if it's worse up there. We don't even_ know if she's going there,_"

"She'll be there," Daryl said firmly. "I ain't askin' if you wanna come. But I'm going. That's it," Daryl folded his arms across his chest. Rick chewed on his bottom lip staring at the Dixon man. He couldn't sacrifice the well being of the entire group for one man's mission to find a missing girl that could be dead.

"I gotta ask the group," Rick said. "They don't trust me now as it is. I can't keep this from them if we do go north."

"Probably best," Daryl muttered and followed Rick back to the fire. Everyone stared at the two fearfully as they returned. Daryl kept his distance behind Rick, but close enough to see everyone's reactions and hear their opinions, not that it mattered much.

"Now, I can't stop him from leaving," Rick started slowly to which everyone became alert and upset. "_But_ we have two choices. Either we leave one of our men for himself. Or we go with him. But I can't make this decision for the rest of us."

"How do we know she's in Michigan?" T-Dog asked with a frown.

"I know. She's there," was all Daryl said, his arms still defensively across his chest.

"We just gotta take his word for it," Rick raised his hands.

"North?" Lori asked. "It'll be colder north."

"There could be more of them there," Maggie worriedly piped up.

"It's a far travel," Hershel nodded.

"And for someone we don't know who's alive," Carol cried.

"_Hey_!" Daryl barked. "I ain't beggin' for y'all to come with me. The way I see it, the colder it get's, the harder it's gon' be for 'em to move around. If they anythin' like animals then they'll migrate south to get warmer and ta' move 'round better. If y'all find a place on the way where y'all can hunker down, then be my guest. But _I'm leavin'_."

"What's that!" T-Dog snapped and everyone looked down the road to see a figure standing at the end of the road's view. The men raised their weapons instantly and the women cowered unsure of what to do. "Is it a geek?" T-Dog asked.

"I can't tell," Rick murmured as he tried to make something out of the silhouette.

"Andrea?" Lori whispered.

"Louie?" Glenn asked hopefully. The figure started moving slowly towards them and the small outline of a woman came closer. Daryl frowned and tightened his grip on the bow. Rick squinted not able to decipher the movement for dead or living. Slowly but surely the woman got closer and closer until the broken eyes of a familiar face came near, standing only a yard away. Shock coated everyone's face at the sight of her tired and worn visage. Glenn, Lori and Rick sprinted to the figure ecstatically.

"I thought we lost you," Glenn held her to his chest even though she was slow to respond. Lori scanned her face to look for any response.

"Honey, are you okay? Where were you?" Lori asked. By now, the rest of the survivors had stood up to see her. Everyone's face glowed with relief and felt a weight lift up off their shoulders. Rick couldn't help but notice that Daryl Dixon's crossbow was still poised, ready to shoot.

"Daryl," Rick said slowly confused at why he was aiming his weapon at the new survivor.

"That ain't Lou," he said firmly, frowning. Glenn's face changed into disbelief and he became timid. The girl looked shocked and fearful as the Dixon man was ready to put an arrow in her head.

"Are you blind!" Lori shrieked at Daryl as if he was a madman. "Put down your weapon!"

"**It ain't Lou**," Daryl pressed, his bow still pointed at her forehead. Rick, wildly looked back at the girl who was undoubtedly the woman they had been living with for months now. Her heart shaped face, her almond eyes, her boney frame. But Daryl Dixon, who was willing to sacrifice his own life to find her, would never in a million years hold her as a target. Rick, with a shaky breath, took a step back. Lori, seeing her husband's actions, also took a few steps back in horror at what they were doing. Glenn had already stepped away from the girl when Daryl had stated his claim the first time around. He quickly deduced that Daryl was right.

The girl's nerved face melted into apathy. Her pretense dropped. Then a smirk.

"Well, well. Aren't you observant?" She sneered.

* * *

Louie's breathing was getting ragged and she felt like collapsing. But there was no place safe enough for her in the forest to rest or close her eyes for a moment. The afternoon was uncomfortably warm and the evening, chilling. Shivering and feeling near death Louie stumbled against a tree to compose herself. She hadn't found the main road when she dismounted the tree. She must have wandered off in the wrong direction. Though she convinced herself that she would only close her eyes for a second, in her heart she knew that death would envelop her and she wouldn't awaken again.

"I'm sorry Daryl," she whispered.

"Sorry fer what?"

"Giving up," she rasped, her eyes slowly closing.

"You ain't givin' up."

"Why not?" she mumbled, sinking into the darkness.

"'_Cuz no girl that's sweet on my lil' brother gives up. Not while I'm 'round_."

* * *

**That's it folks.**

**Just kidding. There's a sequel.**


End file.
